S 1492: Removes the exemption for restaurants, taverns or similar food service establishments from the New York state bag waste reduction act.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1492 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 10, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. FAHY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to plas- tic carryout bags provided by restaurants The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 27-2801 of the environmental 2 conservation law, as added by section 2 of part H of chapter 58 of the 3 laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows: 4 1. "Exempt bag" means a bag: (a) used solely to contain or wrap 5 uncooked meat, fish, or poultry; (b) bags used by a customer solely to 6 package bulk items such as fruits, vegetables, grains, or candy; (c) 7 bags used solely to contain food sliced or prepared to order; (d) bags 8 used solely to contain a newspaper for delivery to a subscriber; (e) 9 bags sold in bulk to a consumer at the point of sale; (f) trash bags; 10 (g) food storage bags; (h) garment bags; (i) bags prepackaged for sale 11 to a customer; or (j) [plastic carryout bags provided by a restaurant, 12 tavern or similar food service establishment, as defined in the state 13 sanitary code, to carryout or deliver food; or (k)] bags provided by a 14 pharmacy to carry prescription drugs. 15 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00520-01-5