What's happening
This bill prohibits Suffolk County from imposing any tax, fee, or local charge on carry out merchandise bags provided by retail stores.
Why it matters
Shifts authority over bag fees from Suffolk County to state or private actors. By prohibiting Suffolk County from imposing bag-related charges, the bill removes a local government's ability to use fees as a tool for environmental or fiscal policy, potentially limiting tailored responses to local litter or waste issues.
Protects consumers and businesses from county-mandated bag charges. The measure ensures that any cost for carryout bags coming from a county-imposed fee cannot be passed on to consumers by retailers or wholesalers, potentially resulting in fewer unexpected or incremental checkout costs for shoppers.
Allows voluntary bag charges by stores. While the county cannot mandate a fee, retailers can still independently choose to charge for bags if they wish, meaning that market-driven or environmentally motivated bag fees remain possible, just not as a county requirement.
Establishes clear definitions to prevent loopholes. The bill provides detailed definitions for "carry out merchandise bag" and "retail store," aiming to avoid ambiguity and ensure the law covers a broad range of businesses and bag types, which could prevent circumvention by reclassifying bags or stores.
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Who cares
Suffolk County officials
The bill would bar the county from imposing carryout bag taxes, fees or local charges, whether assessed through wholesalers, retailers or directly on customers.
Retailers, including grocery stores and restaurants
They could not collect county-directed bag charges but could still charge customers for bags independently of the county.
Carryout bag wholesalers
They would be protected from county-imposed bag charges and could still charge retailers for bag sales.
Suffolk County shoppers
They would not face county-imposed carryout bag charges, though retailers could still impose their own charges.
Headline styles
Ban Bag Fees in Suffolk
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to local government
- Returned to senate
- Died in assembly
- Referred to local governments
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 38–23
- Ordered to third reading cal.2092
- Referred to rules
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
6717
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
June 14, 2017
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the county law, in relation to prohibiting the imposition of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags in Suffolk county
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The county law is amended by adding a new section 853 to read as follows:
§ 853. Prohibition on the imposition of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags in Suffolk county. 1. Definitions. For purposes of this section the following terms shall have the following meanings:
a. "Carry out merchandise bag" shall mean any plastic, paper or other bag or carrying container, provided by a retail store, to a customer of that store, for the purpose of carrying and/or transporting merchandise lawfully obtained at such store. A carry out merchandise bag shall include any plastic carryout bag as defined by subdivision four of section 27-2701 of the environmental conservation law.
b. "Retail store" shall mean any business establishment, including, but not limited to, a grocery store, convenience store, dairy products store, produce market, department store, general merchandise store, clothing store, hardware store, pharmacy, drug store, hotel, restaurant, soda fountain, gasoline station, or any other similar mercantile establishment offering goods and/or services at retail to individual consumers, and/or any other establishment which in the regular course of business sells or rents goods or services directly to the public.
2. Prohibition on the imposition of a tax, fee or local charge on any carry out merchandise bag. The county of Suffolk shall not impose any tax, fee or any other local charge on any carry out merchandise bag as defined in paragraph a of subdivision one of this section. This prohibi-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13220-01-7
S. 6717 2
tion shall apply to the county of Suffolk, regardless of whether such tax, fee or other local charge is attempted to be assessed or charged by such county indirectly against the wholesaler providing any carry out merchandise bag to the retail store, or indirectly against the retail store providing any carry out merchandise bag to the customer, or directly against the customer receiving the carry out merchandise bag from the retail store.
3. Prohibition on the collection of a tax, fee or local charge on any carry out merchandise bag. No wholesaler or retailer may collect any charge, tax or any other fee that has been assessed or directed to be imposed upon customers by the county of Suffolk for the provision of any carry out merchandise bag. Nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to prevent a wholesaler from collecting a charge from a retailer for the sale of a carry out merchandise bag, or prevent a retailer from collecting a charge from a customer for a carry out merchandise bag, if such charge was not assessed or directed to be imposed upon customers by the county of Suffolk.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the county law, in relation to prohibiting the imposition of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags in Suffolk county
Purpose
This bill seeks to prohibit the imposition and/or collection of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags in the county of Suffolk.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 of the bill would amend the county law to add a new section 853 to prohibit the imposition and/or collection of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags imposed by the county of Suffolk.
Section 2 sets forth an immediate effective date.
Justification
Suffolk County has recently approved a five-cent tax on customers that use disposable carry out bags that is scheduled to go into effect in 2018. The State Legislature recently approved a moratorium for a virtually identical plastic bag tax that the City of New York sought to implement, and a similar prohibition is warranted here as well (Chapter 7 of 2017).
This new tax established by Suffolk County would not only place an unnecessary financial burden on the residents of Suffolk, but it also fails to address any environmental concerns alleged in the County's legislation. In fact, none of the five-cent fee goes toward any environmental purpose or awareness campaign; the business keeps the entire fee. In addition, in signing Chapter 7 of 2017 into law, the Governor contemporaneously declared that he would be convening a Statewide Task Force on issue of plastic bags. To that end, it would not be prudent for Suffolk County to go forward with an unnecessary tax on the residents of Suffolk County.
Legislative history
New bill
Fiscal implications
None to the State.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.