NY State Senate Bill 2025-S3216

Senate Bill S3216

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Requires restaurants and persons authorized to sell alcoholic beverages to have tangible menus available upon request

download bill text pdf

Current 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

Please enter your contact information

First Name

Last Name

Email Address

A valid email address is required.

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 24, 2025	referred to consumer protection

2025-S3216 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A2412
Current Committee:: Senate Consumer Protection
Law Section:: General Business Law
Laws Affected:: Add §396-uu, Gen Bus L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S6597, A4064

2025-S3216 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires restaurants and persons authorized to sell alcoholic beverages to have tangible menus available upon request.

2025-S3216 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S3216

SPONSOR: KAVANAGH
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring
restaurants and persons authorized to sell alcoholic beverages to have
tangible menus available upon request

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To ensure that restaurants and bars provide tangible menus to customers
upon request.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one amends the general business law to create a new section,
396-uu, which provides that a restaurant or a licensee possessing a
retail license for on-premises consumption subject to the provisions of
section one hundred six of the alcoholic beverage control law, must
provide a tangible menu communicating essential information about the
beverages and food for sale if a customer requests such a menu. This

legislation also requires that a tangible menu shall include legible
signage posted on a wall or in another conspicuous location.

Section two is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, many restaurants, bars,
and other businesses have switched from using printed or laminated menus
to "QR codes" or websites accessible on smartphones. While the ability
to view a menu online has certain benefits, it renders the menu inacces-
sible to individuals who do not have a smartphone, whose smartphone is
low on battery or dead, who may be forced to pay fees to use data to
access such a menu online, or who are not proficient in using QR codes
or digital ordering platforms. Any customer should have the right to
request a tangible, legible copy of a menu that communicates essential
information about prices and products available.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2024: S6597A (Kavanagh) - REFERRED TO CONSUMER. PROTECTION /A4064A
(Gallagher) - ordered to third reading cal.111

2023: S6597A (Kavanagh) - PASSED SENATE /A4064A (Gallagher) - advanced
to third reading cal.167

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect thirty days after it shall have become law.

2025-S3216 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3216
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 24, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. KAVANAGH -- 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  requiring
   restaurants and persons authorized to sell alcoholic beverages to have
   tangible menus available upon request

   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 a new section
 396-uu to read as follows:
   § 396-UU. TANGIBLE MENUS. ANY  RESTAURANT  OR  LICENSEE  POSSESSING  A
 RETAIL  LICENSE FOR ON-PREMISES CONSUMPTION SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF
 SECTION ONE HUNDRED SIX OF THE ALCOHOLIC  BEVERAGE  CONTROL  LAW  SHALL,
 UPON  THE  REQUEST  OF  A CUSTOMER, MAKE AVAILABLE A PRINTED OR TANGIBLE
 MENU COMMUNICATING ESSENTIAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE  BEVERAGES  AND  FOOD
 AVAILABLE  FOR  SALE  BY  SUCH RESTAURANT OR LICENSEE.   A TANGIBLE MENU
 SHALL INCLUDE LEGIBLE SIGNAGE POSTED ON A WALL OR IN ANOTHER CONSPICUOUS
 LOCATION.   UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL  THE  ONLY  MENU  AVAILABLE  BE
 ACCESSIBLE EXCLUSIVELY THROUGH DIGITAL OR ONLINE MEANS. FOR THE PURPOSES
 OF  THIS  SECTION,  THE TERMS "RESTAURANT" AND "LICENSEE" SHALL HAVE THE
 SAME MEANING AS THOSE TERMS ARE DEFINED IN SECTION THREE OF THE ALCOHOL-
 IC BEVERAGE CONTROL LAW.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.
 
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD00918-01-5

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.