Prohibits retail establishments including food-service establishments from refusing to accept payment in cash; provides a civil penalty will be assessed for such actions.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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4153
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 3, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sens. SANDERS, ADDABBO, MAY, MURRAY -- 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
retail establishments from refusing to accept payment in cash
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
2 396-ii to read as follows:
3 § 396-ii. Cashless policies prohibited. a. As used in this section,
4 the following terms shall have the following meanings:
5 (i) "Food-service establishment" shall mean an establishment which
6 gives or offers for sale food or beverages to the public for consumption
7 or use on or off the premises.
8 (ii) "Retail establishment" shall mean an establishment in which
9 consumer commodities are sold, displayed or offered for sale, or which
10 provides services to consumers at retail.
11 b. It shall be unlawful for a food-service establishment or a retail
12 establishment, as policy, to refuse to accept payment in cash from
13 consumers.
14 c. A food-service establishment or retail establishment violating this
15 section is liable for a civil penalty of not more than two hundred fifty
16 dollars for the first violation and a civil penalty of not more than
17 five hundred dollars for each succeeding violation.
18 d. The department of labor may promulgate such rules as it deems
19 necessary to implement and enforce this section.
20 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
21 it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00727-01-5
