Prohibits public food service establishments operating in the state from providing single-use plastic utensils or condiments to any customer which are not eco-friendly alternative utensils and condiments, except upon, and in accordance with, the express request of that customer.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
3911
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 30, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. HARCKHAM -- 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 eco-
friendly alternative utensils and condiments
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Article 27 of the environmental conservation law is amended
2 by adding a new title 34 to read as follows:
3 TITLE 34
4 ECO-FRIENDLY ALTERNATIVE UTENSILS AND CONDIMENTS
5 Section 27-3401. Definitions.
6 27-3403. Eco-friendly alternative utensils and condiments.
7 § 27-3401. Definitions.
8 As used in this title, the following terms shall have the following
9 meanings:
10 1. "Condiment" means packaged ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, hot sauce,
11 salt, pepper, or any other herb, spice, seasoning, sauce, or substance
12 that is used to give a special flavor to food.
13 2. "Eco-friendly alternative utensils and condiments" means and
14 includes: utensils and condiment packets or packages which are composed
15 of compostable material or another material approved, by the department
16 or the United States environmental protection agency, as an eco-friendly
17 alternative to conventional plastics, regardless of whether such uten-
18 sils and condiment packages are designed to be discarded, by the consum-
19 er, after a single use; utensils and condiment packets or packages which
20 are designed to be used multiple times and are not intended to be
21 discarded after a single use, regardless of whether such utensils and
22 condiment packages are composed of conventional plastics; and any other
23 utensils and condiment packets or packages that are approved, by the
24 department or the United States environmental protection agency, as
25 eco-friendly alternatives to single-use plastic utensils or condiments.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05329-01-5
S. 3911 2
1 3. "Public food service establishment" means any building, vehicle,
2 place or structure, or any room or division in a building, vehicle,
3 place or structure where food is prepared, served or sold for immediate
4 consumption on or in the vicinity of the premises; called for or taken
5 out by customers; or prepared prior to being delivered to another
6 location for consumption.
7 4. "Single-use plastic utensils or condiments" means utensils or
8 condiment packets or packages which are composed of conventional plas-
9 tics and are designed to be discarded, by the consumer, after a single
10 use.
11 5. "Utensil" means an instrument, including, but not limited to, a
12 knife, fork, or spoon, which are used to eat meals served by a food
13 service business.
14 6. "Dishware" shall mean plates, bowls, and other dishes which are
15 used to eat meals served by a food service business.
16 § 27-3403. Eco-friendly alternative utensils and condiments.
17 1. (a) No public food service establishment operating in the state
18 shall provide single-use plastic utensils or condiments to any customer
19 which are not eco-friendly alternative utensils and condiments, except
20 upon, and in accordance with, the express request of that customer. The
21 provisions of this paragraph shall be applicable regardless of whether a
22 customer is receiving meals from the food service business on an eat-in,
23 take-out, drive-thru, or delivery basis, and regardless of whether the
24 customer's meal order is placed in person, over the phone, online, or
25 using other available means or methods.
26 (b) A public food service establishment that has on-site seating
27 capacity shall provide its on-site customers with reusable, washable
28 utensils and dishware for use thereby while consuming meals on the prem-
29 ises, and shall require each customer using such utensils to return
30 those utensils to the food service business, for the purposes of clean-
31 ing and reuse, upon completion of the customer's on-site meal.
32 2. Any public food service establishment that elects to supply custom-
33 ers with single-use plastic utensils or condiments, upon request, as
34 authorized by paragraph (a) of subdivision one of this section:
35 (a) shall provide each customer with only those types and amounts of
36 single-use plastic utensils and condiments that have been expressly
37 requested thereby; and
38 (b) shall not create, acquire, or provide customers with bundled pack-
39 ages that contain more than one type of single-use plastic utensil or
40 condiment, regardless of the nature of any customer request therefor.
41 3. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to require a public food
42 service establishment to provide any single-use plastic utensils or
43 condiments to customers, upon their request, as authorized by paragraph
44 (a) of subdivision one of this section.
45 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
46 it shall have become a law.
