NY State Senate Bill 2009-S2824

Senate Bill S2824

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Prohibits restaurants from the sale of food items containing trans fats; and requires notice of calorie, fat and sodium content

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Consumer Protection Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 06, 2010	referred to consumer protection
Mar 04, 2009	referred to consumer protection

2009-S2824 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Consumer Protection
Law Section:: General Business Law
Laws Affected:: Add §§396-ii & 396-jj, Gen Bus L

2009-S2824 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits restaurants from the sale of food items containing trans fats; and requires notice of calorie, fat and sodium content to the public in menus and/or menu boards.

2009-S2824 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S2824

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting
restaurants from selling foods containing trans fats and requiring the
posting of calorie, fat and sodium content in food items sold

 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :
To provide certain nutrition information to customers of chain
restaurants and food establishments and to prevent restaurants from
cooking with unhealthy trans fats.

 SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS :
Amends the general business law by adding a new section 396-ii which
would require chain restaurants to list on each menu the total number
of calories, grams of saturated and trans fat, and milligrams of
sodium per serving, as usually prepared and offered for sale. A
violation of this section shall be punishable by a civil fine not
exceeding five hundred dollars for the first violation and one
thousand dollars for every subsequent violation.

A new section 396-jj would also be added to the general business law.
This section would prohibit restaurants from utilizing any trans fats
in the preparation or cooking of any food item.  Whenever the court
has determined that a violation has occurred, they may impose a civil
fine of fifty dollars for each day that such violation occurs, but in

no event shall the total penalty exceed five hundred dollars.

 JUSTIFICATION :
Obesity rates in adults doubled over the last twenty years. The
percentage of seriously overweight children tripled in the past two
decades. The NYC Health Department found that nearly half of
elementary-aged children are overweight. According to the NYS WIC
Association over 32% of the children age 2-5 who are participating in
New York State are overweight or at risk of being overweight. This
leads to illnesses such as diabetes in young children. Centers for
Disease Control (CDC) research estimates that one in three U.S.
children born in 2000 will become diabetic.in their lifetimes because
of obesity. A study commissioned by the CDC found that $75 billion is
spent nationally each year on obesity-related medical costs, half of
it with public dollars through Medicaid and Medicare. It was estimated
that $3.5 billion of New York's Medicaid spending is due to obesity,
by far the highest level of any State.

During the time when obesity has been rising, Americans are
increasingly eating meals away from home and food businesses spend
hundreds of millions of dollars encouraging children and their
families to do it even more. In 1970, Americans spent just 26% of
their food dollars on foods prepared outside their homes but today
spend almost half of food dollars eating out. The average American
consumes about one-third of their calories from foods from restaurants
and other food-service establishments. Portion sizes have been
increasing and studies show that people tend to eat greater quantities
of food when they are served more. It is not uncommon for a restaurant
entree to provide half of a day's recommended calories, saturated and
trans fat, and sodium. Children eat almost twice as many calories when
they eat out compared to home. A recent Surgeon General's report on
obesity recommends increased nutrition information on foods eaten away
from home.

Since 1994, consumers can get nutrition labeling on packaged foods at
the supermarket; However, they are now getting more and more of their
food from restaurants and other food service establishments than years
ago and they cannot tell that a sweetened coffee drink at one chain
may have as many fat and calories as a cheeseburger with fries at
another.  Food industry critics of government efforts to fight the
obesity problem claim that it is up to parents to choose healthier
foods to eat. Chain restaurant nutrition information could empower
parents, and children, to do a better job.

Some health experts believe this generation of children will be the
first in history to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents
because of the obesity epidemic. Everyone, including food businesses,
needs to be part of the solution or we will all pay the consequences.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
None.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS :
None.

 EFFECTIVE DATE: :
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law.

2009-S2824 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  2824

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                              March 4, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  HANNON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection

AN ACT to amend the general business law,  in  relation  to  prohibiting
  restaurants from selling foods containing trans fats and requiring the
  posting of calorie, fat and sodium content in food items sold

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. The general business law  is  amended  by  adding  two  new
sections 396-ii and 396-jj to read as follows:
  S  396-II.  RESTAURANTS;  NOTIFICATION  OF  CALORIES,  FAT  AND SODIUM
CONTENT IN FOODS. 1. ANY CHAIN RESTAURANT OR FRANCHISE,  OR  CHAIN  FOOD
SERVICE  ESTABLISHMENT  WHERE FOOD IS PREPARED OR COOKED AND OFFERED FOR
SALE TO THE PUBLIC FOR CONSUMPTION ON PREMISES, INCLUDING ANY RESTAURANT
WHICH DOES NOT SUPPLY TABLE SERVICE BUT COUNTER SERVICE ONLY, SHALL LIST
ADJACENT TO EACH FOOD ITEM ON  THE  STANDARD  PRINTED  MENU,  THE  TOTAL
NUMBER  OF CALORIES, GRAMS OF SATURATED AND TRANS FAT, AND MILLIGRAMS OF
SODIUM PER SERVING, AS USUALLY PREPARED AND OFFERED FOR SALE, IN A CLEAR
AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER. FOR FOOD OFFERED FOR SALE IN A CHAIN  RESTAURANT
OR  CHAIN FOOD SERVICE ESTABLISHMENT THAT USES ONLY MENU BOARDS OR SIMI-
LAR SIGNS, SUCH INFORMATION SHALL BE LISTED ADJACENT TO EACH  FOOD  ITEM
LISTED  ON  THE STANDARD MENU BOARD OR SIGN, AND SUCH MENU BOARD OR SIGN
SHALL BE CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS  TO  THE  PUBLIC  AND  WITHIN  REASONABLE
DISTANCE  FROM  THE  MAIN ENTRANCE OF THE RESTAURANT OR OTHER ESTABLISH-
MENT.
  2. A VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE PUNISHABLE BY A CIVIL FINE NOT
EXCEEDING FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS FOR THE FIRST VIOLATION AND ONE  THOUSAND
DOLLARS FOR EVERY SUBSEQUENT VIOLATION.
  3.  ANY RESTAURANT OR FOOD SERVICE ESTABLISHMENT PRIVATELY OWNED SHALL
BE EXEMPT FROM THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION.
  S 396-JJ. RESTAURANTS; TRANS FATS PROHIBITED.  1.  ANY  RESTAURANT  OR
OTHER  FOOD  SERVICE  ESTABLISHMENT WHERE FOOD IS PREPARED OR COOKED AND

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD03394-02-9

S. 2824                             2

OFFERED FOR SALE TO THE PUBLIC FOR CONSUMPTION  ON  PREMISES  SHALL  NOT
UTILIZE  ANY  TRANS  FATS IN THE PREPARATION OR COOKING OF ANY FOOD ITEM
OFFERED FOR SALE IN SUCH ESTABLISHMENT AND SHALL NOT OFFER FOR  SALE  OR
SERVE ANY FOOD CONTAINING ANY TRANS FATS.
  2. WHENEVER THERE SHALL BE A VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION, AN APPLICATION
MAY  BE  MADE  BY  THE ATTORNEY GENERAL IN THE NAME OF THE PEOPLE OF THE
STATE OF NEW YORK TO A COURT OR JUSTICE HAVING JURISDICTION BY A SPECIAL
PROCEEDING TO ISSUE AN INJUNCTION, AND UPON NOTICE TO THE RESPONDENT  OF
NOT  LESS THAN FIVE DAYS, TO ENJOIN AND RESTRAIN THE CONTINUANCE OF SUCH
VIOLATIONS; AND IF IT SHALL APPEAR TO THE SATISFACTION OF THE  COURT  OR
JUSTICE  THAT  THE  RESPONDENT  HAS,  IN FACT, VIOLATED THIS SECTION, AN
INJUNCTION MAY BE  ISSUED  BY  SUCH  COURT  OR  JUSTICE,  ENJOINING  AND
RESTRAINING  ANY  FURTHER  VIOLATION,  WITHOUT  REQUIRING PROOF THAT ANY
PERSON HAS, IN FACT, BEEN INJURED OR DAMAGED THEREBY. WHENEVER THE COURT
SHALL DETERMINE THAT A VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION HAS OCCURRED, THE COURT
MAY IMPOSE A CIVIL PENALTY OF FIFTY  DOLLARS  FOR  EACH  DAY  THAT  SUCH
VIOLATION  OCCURS,  BUT  IN  NO  EVENT SHALL THE TOTAL PENALTY THEREFORE
EXCEED FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS. IN CONNECTION WITH  ANY  SUCH  APPLICATION,
THE  ATTORNEY  GENERAL  IS  AUTHORIZED TO TAKE PROOF AND MAKE A DETERMI-
NATION OF THE RELEVANT FACTS AND TO ISSUE SUBPOENAS IN  ACCORDANCE  WITH
THE CIVIL PRACTICE LAW AND RULES. FOOD ITEMS SHALL BE ANALYZED FOR CALO-
RIE,  SATURATED  AND  TRANS  FAT,  CARBOHYDRATE AND SODIUM CONTENT USING
METHODS APPROVED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC HEALTH.
  S 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
it shall have become a law.

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