Senate Bill S428A

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  428--A
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  RIVERA, JACKSON, KAVANAGH, LIU, SEPULVEDA -- read
   twice and ordered printed, and when printed to  be  committed  to  the
   Committee  on  Health  --  recommitted  to  the Committee on Health in
   accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 --  committee  discharged,  bill
   amended,  ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said commit-
   tee
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation  to  requiring  chain
   restaurants to label menu items that have a high content of sodium
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding  a  new  section
 1358 to read as follows:
   §  1358.  CHAIN  RESTAURANTS;  SODIUM CONTENT OF MENU ITEMS. 1.  DEFI-
 NITIONS. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE
 FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   A.  "CHAIN MENU DEVELOPER" MEANS THE PERSON THAT OWNS AND LICENSES THE
 BRAND NAME UNDER WHICH A CHAIN RESTAURANT DOES BUSINESS,  OR  ANY  OTHER
 PERSON  RESPONSIBLE  FOR  DETERMINING  THE  FORMULA  OR RECIPE FOR ITEMS
 DISPLAYED ON THE MENU OF A CHAIN RESTAURANT.
   B. "CHAIN RESTAURANT" MEANS A FOOD SERVICE ESTABLISHMENT,  AS  DEFINED
 IN PART FOURTEEN OF THE NEW YORK SANITARY CODE 10 NYCRR 14-1.20, THAT IS
 PART  OF  A  CHAIN WITH FIFTEEN OR MORE LOCATIONS WITHIN THE STATE DOING
 BUSINESS UNDER THE SAME NAME, REGARDLESS OF THE TYPE OF OWNERSHIP OF THE
 LOCATIONS, AND OFFERING FOR SALE SUBSTANTIALLY SIMILAR MENU ITEMS.
   C. "DAILY VALUE" MEANS THE DAILY REFERENCE VALUE USED  BY  THE  UNITED
 STATES  FOOD  AND  DRUG  ADMINISTRATION IN CALCULATING THE PERCENT DAILY
 VALUE FOR NUTRITION INFORMATION PROVIDED ON FOOD LABELS.
   D. "MENU OR MENU BOARD" MEANS THE PRIMARY WRITING OF  A  FOOD  SERVICE
 ESTABLISHMENT FROM WHICH A CUSTOMER MAKES AN ORDER SELECTION, INCLUDING,
 BUT  NOT  LIMITED TO, BREAKFAST, LUNCH, AND DINNER MENUS; DESSERT MENUS;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD01666-03-6
 S. 428--A                           2
 
 BEVERAGE MENUS; CHILDREN'S  MENUS;  OTHER  SPECIALTY  MENUS;  ELECTRONIC
 MENUS; AND MENUS ON THE INTERNET.
   E. "STANDARD MENU ITEM" MEANS A FOOD OR BEVERAGE ITEM OFFERED FOR SALE
 BY  A CHAIN RESTAURANT THAT IS LISTED ON A MENU OR MENU BOARD, INCLUDING
 A VARIABLE FOOD OR BEVERAGE ITEM THAT COMES IN DIFFERENT FLAVORS, VARIE-
 TIES, OR COMBINATIONS AND IS LISTED AS A SINGLE  ITEM.    STANDARD  MENU
 ITEM  INCLUDES ANY COMBINATION MEAL FOR WHICH ANY COMBINATION OF FOOD OR
 BEVERAGE ITEMS AVAILABLE TO THE CONSUMER EXCEEDS  THE  DAILY  VALUE  FOR
 SODIUM.  STANDARD  MENU  ITEM INCLUDES TEMPORARY MENU ITEMS APPEARING ON
 THE MENU FOR LESS THAN A TOTAL OF SIXTY CONSECUTIVE AND  NON-CONSECUTIVE
 DAYS PER CALENDAR YEAR.
   2.  INDUSTRY GUIDANCE. NO LATER THAN ONE YEAR AFTER THE EFFECTIVE DATE
 OF THIS SECTION, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL PUBLISH  GUIDANCE  EXPLAINING  THE
 REQUIREMENTS OF THIS SECTION AND HOW BUSINESSES CAN COMPLY.
   3.    SODIUM  WARNING ICON. NO LATER THAN ONE YEAR AFTER THE EFFECTIVE
 DATE OF THIS SECTION, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL DEVELOP AN ICON WITH ACCOMPA-
 NYING TEXT THAT SHALL BE DISPLAYED ADJACENT TO THE NAME OF ANY  STANDARD
 MENU  ITEM  THAT EXCEEDS THE DAILY VALUE FOR SODIUM. BEGINNING TWO YEARS
 AFTER THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS SECTION ANY CHAIN RESTAURANT  OPERATING
 WITHIN  THE  STATE AND NOT OTHERWISE EXEMPTED UNDER SUBDIVISION SEVEN OF
 THIS SECTION SHALL DISPLAY ON MENUS OR MENU BOARDS:
   A.  THE SODIUM WARNING ICON AND ACCOMPANYING TEXT PROMULGATED  BY  THE
 DEPARTMENT PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION, AT A HEIGHT NO SMALLER THAN THE
 LARGEST LETTER IN THE NAME OF THE ITEM; AND
   B. THE FOLLOWING FACTUAL STATEMENT EXPLAINING THE SODIUM WARNING ICON:
 "WARNING  (INSERT  ICON IMAGE AND ACCOMPANYING TEXT HERE) INDICATES THAT
 THE SODIUM (SALT) CONTENT OF THIS ITEM IS HIGHER THAN  THE  TOTAL  DAILY
 RECOMMENDED LIMIT (2300 MG). HIGH SODIUM INTAKE CAN INCREASE BLOOD PRES-
 SURE AND THE RISK OF HEART DISEASE AND STROKE."
   4.    CHAIN  MENU  DEVELOPER  REPORTING REQUIREMENT. ONCE EVERY NINETY
 DAYS, EACH CHAIN MENU DEVELOPER  SHALL  REPORT  TO  THE  DEPARTMENT  THE
 AMOUNT  OF  SODIUM  IN EACH STANDARD MENU ITEM OFFERED FOR SALE IN THEIR
 CHAIN RESTAURANT, OR THAT NO CHANGES TO THE MENU INFORMATION  HAVE  BEEN
 MADE SINCE THE LAST REPORT.
   5.   REPORT REQUIRED. NO LATER THAN SIX YEARS AFTER THE EFFECTIVE DATE
 OF THIS SECTION, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL ISSUE A REPORT REVIEWING  EVIDENCE
 OF  THE  IMPACT  OF THIS SECTION ON MENU ITEM REFORMULATION AND CONSUMER
 BEHAVIOR, AND RECOMMEND ADDITIONAL NUTRIENTS THAT SHOULD  BE  CONSIDERED
 FOR MENU WARNING ICONS.
   6.  VIOLATIONS.   ANY CHAIN RESTAURANT THAT VIOLATES THE PROVISIONS OF
 THIS SECTION SHALL BE SUBJECT TO A CIVIL PENALTY OF NOT  MORE  THAN  TWO
 HUNDRED FIFTY DOLLARS PER DAY FOR EACH LOCATION NOT IN COMPLIANCE.
   7.  EXEMPTIONS.  THE SODIUM WARNING ICON REQUIRED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVI-
 SION THREE OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED TO BE DISPLAYED NEXT TO
 A MENU ITEM THAT IS ALREADY LABELED WITH A SODIUM ICON EQUAL OR  GREATER
 IN  SIZE  AND  SIMILAR IN GENERAL APPEARANCE, WHEN SUCH ICON IS REQUIRED
 PURSUANT TO A RULE, REGULATION, ORDINANCE, LOCAL LAW,  ORDER  OR  POLICY
 ISSUED  BY ANOTHER JURISDICTION HAVING THE SAME OR SUBSTANTIALLY SIMILAR
 EFFECT AS DETERMINED BY THE COMMISSIONER.  FOOD  SERVICE  ESTABLISHMENTS
 EXEMPTED  FROM  THE SODIUM WARNING LABELING REQUIREMENT BY THIS SUBDIVI-
 SION SHALL BE USED IN DETERMINING IF A PARTICULAR  FOOD  SERVICE  ESTAB-
 LISHMENT IS A CHAIN RESTAURANT.
   § 2. Severability. If any provision of this act, or any application of
 any provision of this act, is held to be invalid, or to  violate  or  be
 inconsistent  with  any federal law or regulation, that shall not affect
 the validity or effectiveness of any other provision of this act, or  of
 S. 428--A                           3
 
 any  other  application of any provision of this act, which can be given
 effect without that provision or  application;  and  to  that  end,  the
 provisions and applications of this act are severable.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.