Implements a one year phase-in period for a local law, ordinance or resolution imposing a paper carryout bag reduction fee where forty percent of such fees are returned to such county or city for the purpose of purchasing and distributing reusable bags, with priority given to low- and fixed-income communities, and after the first year, such forty percent of fees shall be remitted to the person who collected the fees.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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5072
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 12, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SIMON, COOK, EPSTEIN -- read once and referred to
the Committee on Environmental Conservation
AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to the
paper carryout bag reduction fee
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 7 of section 27-2805 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 7. All paper carryout bag reduction fee monies and any related penal-
5 ties and interest remitted to the commissioner of taxation and finance
6 under this section, except as hereinafter provided, shall be deposited
7 daily with such responsible banks, banking houses, or trust companies as
8 may be designated by the state comptroller. Of the revenues deposited,
9 the comptroller shall retain in the comptroller's hands such amount as
10 the commissioner of taxation and finance may determine to be necessary
11 for refunds or reimbursements of the fees collected or received pursuant
12 to this section, out of which the comptroller shall pay any refunds or
13 reimbursements of such fees to which persons shall be entitled under the
14 provisions of this section. The comptroller, after reserving such refund
15 and reimbursement fund shall: (a) for the first year following the
16 effective date of a local law, ordinance or resolution imposing a paper
17 carryout bag reduction fee adopted pursuant to subdivision one of this
18 section by a county or city, on or before the twelfth day of each month,
19 pay to the appropriate fiscal officers of the counties or cities impos-
20 ing tax under subdivision one of this section an amount equal to forty
21 percent of the paper carryout bag reduction fee monies and any related
22 penalties and interest collected by the commissioner of taxation and
23 finance in respect of each such county or city in the preceding calendar
24 month to be used for the purpose of purchasing and distributing reusable
25 bags, with priority given to low- and fixed-income communities; and (b)
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00154-01-5
A. 5072 2
1 after the first year following the effective date of a local law, ordi-
2 nance or resolution imposing a paper carryout bag reduction fee adopted
3 pursuant to subdivision one of this section by a county or city, on or
4 before the twelfth day of each month, pay to each person located in such
5 county or city and required to collect the paper carryout bag reduction
6 fee an amount equal to forty percent of the paper carryout bag reduction
7 fee monies collected by such person. Provided further that at the end of
8 each fiscal year, any funds which have not been used for the purpose
9 defined in this section shall be returned to the comptroller and be
10 deposited into the general fund to be used for the purpose of purchasing
11 and distributing reusable bags with priority given to low- and fixed-in-
12 come communities. Any remaining amount of paper carryout bag reduction
13 fee monies and any related penalties and interest shall be deposited
14 monthly into the environmental protection fund established pursuant to
15 section ninety-two-s of the state finance law.
16 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
