BILL NUMBER:  S362

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the general city law, in relation to prohibiting the
imposition of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise
bags in certain cities

 PURPOSE :

This bill seeks to prohibit the imposition and/or collection of any
tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section one of the bill would amend the general city law to add a new
section 13-D to prohibit the imposition and/or collection of any tax,
fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags imposed by a city
with a population of one million or more.

More specifically, subdivision one of this bill would provide a
definition of carry out merchandise bag and retail store, while
subdivision two would establish a prohibition on any city of one
million or more, from imposing any tax, fee or local charge on any
carry out merchandise bag, and subdivision three would establish a
corollary prohibition in any city of one million or more, from having
              

a wholesaler or retailer collect such a tax, fee or local charge on
any carry out merchandise bag.

 JUSTIFICATION :

Carry out merchandise bags are any plastic, paper or other bag or
carrying container, provided by a retail store, to a customer of that
store, for the purpose of carrying and/or transporting merchandise
lawfully obtained at such store. They further include any plastic
carryout bag as defined by subdivision four of section 27-2701 of the
environmental conservation law. In brief, they are most often
disposable bags provided to customers by a grocery or other retail
store for the purposes of carrying or transporting their food items or
other merchandise from the store to the customer's home.

For decades, grocery stores and retailers have provided customers with
disposable carry out bags to transport their merchandise. For many
years, such disposable bags were predominantly made of paper, but in
an effort to accommodate advocates in the environmental movement and
promote environmental protection, so as to save trees and switch to a
more eco-friendly recyclable material, most grocery stores and retail
establishments have switched to plastic bags and containers. These
disposable bags are easily recyclable, safe, convenient and healthy,
and have become the standard in the retail marketplace.

Despite the fact that there are many recycling programs for carryout
plastic bags, both in practice and in law, there has now developed a
movement in the environmental community to abandon its previous
advocacy for disposable plastic bags and advance the promotion of
permanent, customer owned shopping bags. As consumers clearly prefer
the disposable bags presently provided by grocery stores and other
retail establishments, those who favor the permanent, customer owned
shopping bags, now seek to force consumers to modify their behavior,
by means of the imposition of a tax or fee on every disposable carry
out merchandise bag provided by a retailer.

Although well intentioned, this bag tax or fee idea, is actually
harmful to consumers, families, retailers and public health. It is not
only impracticable to believe that every consumer can provide their
own carry out bag or container, but imposing a tax or fee on every bag
provided by the retailer, would significantly increase the cost of
groceries and every retail item sold in any city that imposes such a
tax or fee. Families who are already facing a high cost of living,
would be seriously and negatively impacted by this misguided and
unnecessary tax or fee.

Worse still, if customers do begin to provide their own carry out
bags, as those who support this tax or fee intend, such reusable bags
will undoubtedly present a serious public health issue. For such
reusable bags often present the risk of bringing into the store a
contaminate of food based disease, bacteria or other illness, which
can cause serious cross contamination or infection for both the
customer, or other customers, or store employees. Issues such as
salmonella, or other bacteria or viruses, which escape from food
previously carried in the reusable bag, or which are being spread from
the exposure to customer's own home environment, can be easily spread
from exposure to the reusable bag.

To bring such source of contaminates or disease back into the store is
both ill advised and dangerous. Accordingly, unless the reusable bag
has been completely cleaned and disinfected, which is a practice few
consumers with such reusable bags follow, this practice is one that
could well cause serious harm and disease to all the people exposed to
the bag. There is a reason why health care facilities, restaurants,
hotels and other entities that provide food and exposure to the public
use disposable and sterilized items. There is a reason why grocery and
retail stores have been using disposable bags for generations. To do
otherwise is simply irresponsible, and non disposable bags illustrate
this avoidable and ill advised risk.

As a result, it can be seen that this misguided tax or fee desperately
needs to be prohibited from being imposed in the City of New York.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

2016: S.7336 - Passed Senate.

 BUDGET IMPLICATIONS :

None noted.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act would take effect immediately.