Prohibits the sale of single-use plastic water bottles that hold twenty-one ounces of water or less in port authority facilities in New York; requires such facilities install water fountains within one year.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5112
SPONSOR: Gonzalez-Rojas TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend chapter 154 of the laws of 1921 relating to the port
authority of New York and New Jersey, in relation to prohibiting the
sale of single-use plastic water bottles in certain port authority
facilities
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Prohibits the sale of single-use plastic water bottles in certain port
authority facilities
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill amends law to require that all officials in the
port authority must maintain records of being lobbied. It also estab-
lishes that a study must be completed within a year and that all facili-
ties located in the state of New York must prohibit the sale of single-
use plastic water bottles that hold 21 ounces of water or less and
require water fountains to be built.
Section 2 sets forth the bill's effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
According to the Container Recycling Institute (CRI), "each day in the
US more than 60 million plastic water bottles are thrown away. Most end
up in landfills or incinerators, and millions litter America's streets,
parks and waterways." Americans and New Yorkers are some of the biggest
culprits in proliferating the ongoing crisis of climate change. They
also lead to other serious public health issues. Studies show that the
toxins decomposing bottles of water leach into our environment cause a
variety of health issues, including reproductive problems and cancer.
With alternatives to plastic water bottles there is a need to ban plas-
tic water bottles. The CRI found that it takes up to 1,000 years for
every single bottle of water to decompose and they leak harmful chemi-
cals into our environment. This legislation will prohibit the sale of
single-use plastic water bottles that hold twenty-one ounces at all
transportation facilities, terminal facilities, and all other facilities
operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey that are in
New York State. It will allow a grace period of one year for facilities
to install water fountains.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2022: A9932 - corporations, authorities and commissions
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS TO STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None yet
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect upon the enactment into law by the state of
New jersey of legislation having an identical effect with this act, but
if the state of New Jersey shall have already enacted such legislation,
this act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5112
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 2, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GONZALEZ-ROJAS, GLICK, GALLAGHER, SIMON, DAVILA,
EPSTEIN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Corporations,
Authorities and Commissions
AN ACT to amend chapter 154 of the laws of 1921 relating to the port
authority of New York and New Jersey, in relation to prohibiting the
sale of single-use plastic water bottles in certain port authority
facilities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subparagraphs 5 and 6 of paragraph f of subdivision 3 of
2 article IV of section 1 of chapter 154 of the laws of 1921 relating to
3 the port authority of New York and New Jersey, paragraph 5 as amended
4 and paragraph 6 as added by chapter 390 of the laws of 2022, are amended
5 and a new subparagraph 7 is added to read as follows:
6 (5) have an efficiency study of the port authority and its operations
7 conducted by an independent entity within [three years] one year of the
8 effective date of this section and thereafter upon the request of the
9 governors of New York and New Jersey, and if no request is made, no
10 later than [three years] one year after the most recent efficiency study
11 was conducted; [and]
12 (6) information concerning services for human trafficking victims in
13 port authority bus terminals. 1. Any bus terminal maintained or operated
14 by the port authority shall make available in plain view and in a
15 conspicuous place and manner in the public restrooms, informational
16 cards and/or signs developed by:
17 (a) the office of temporary and disability assistance in consultation
18 with the New York state interagency task force on human trafficking; or
19 (b) the United States Department of Homeland Security.
20 2. All informational cards and signs shall only contain information
21 concerning services for human trafficking victims and shall prominently
22 include the national human trafficking hotline telephone number[.]; and
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04853-01-3
A. 5112 2
1 (7) establish a policy requiring all transportation facilities, termi-
2 nal facilities, and all other facilities of the port authority located
3 in the state of New York to prohibit the sale of single-use plastic
4 water bottles that hold twenty-one ounces of water or less and install
5 water fountains within one year of the effective date of this subpara-
6 graph.
7 § 2. This act shall take effect upon the enactment into law by the
8 state of New Jersey of legislation having an identical effect with this
9 act, but if the state of New Jersey shall have already enacted such
10 legislation, this act shall take effect immediately; provided, however,
11 if chapter 559 of the laws of 2015 shall not have taken effect on or
12 before such date then this act shall take effect on the same date and in
13 the same manner as such chapter of the laws of 2015 takes effect;
14 provided that the state of New Jersey shall notify the legislative bill
15 drafting commission upon the occurrence of the enactment of the legis-
16 lation provided for in section one of this act in order that the commis-
17 sion may maintain an accurate and timely effective data base of the
18 official text of the laws of the state of New York in furtherance of
19 effectuating the provisions of section 44 of the legislative law and
20 section 70-b of the public officers law; provided further, however, if
21 chapter 390 of the laws of 2022 shall not have taken effect on or before
22 such date then the amendments to subparagraphs 5 and 6 of paragraph f of
23 subdivision 3 of article IV of section 1 of chapter 154 of the laws of
24 1921 relating to the port authority of New York and New Jersey, as
25 amended by chapter 559 of the laws of 2015, made by section one of this
26 act shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as such
27 chapter of the laws of 2022 takes effect; provided that the state of New
28 Jersey shall notify the legislative bill drafting commission upon the
29 occurrence of the enactment of the legislation provided for in section
30 one of this act in order that the commission may maintain an accurate
31 and timely effective data base of the official text of the laws of the
32 state of New York in furtherance of effectuating the provisions of
33 section 44 of the legislative law and section 70-b of the public offi-
34 cers law.
