What's happening
This bill requires restaurants to meet nutritional standards for meals that are sold with toys or other incentive items aimed at children.
Why it matters
Aims to reduce the marketing power of toys and similar incentives to drive unhealthy eating habits among children by tying such incentives only to meals that meet specific nutritional standards. potentially shifting restaurant offerings toward healthier options for kids.
Empowers the state health commissioner to set detailed nutrition rules (covering calories, sodium, fat, sugar, fruits, vegetables, grains, etc.). giving regulators flexibility to update standards as nutrition science or public health priorities evolve.
Applies broadly to all types of restaurants and food establishments, not just fast-food chains. meaning that a wide range of businesses would need to comply if they want to offer toys or similar incentives with meals for children.
Imposes escalating civil penalties for violations (up to $2,500 for repeat offenses),. which could create a strong financial incentive for restaurants to change their marketing and menu practices, and signals a serious approach to public health enforcement.
Albany, before your first meeting.
Every bill that moved yesterday, summarized in a sentence and ranked by impact. The Albany Scorecard follows on Sundays.
Free. Unsubscribe in one click. Want alerts on specific bills? Create an account.
Who cares
Headline styles
Healthy Kids’ Meal Standards
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- Referred to health
- Committed to rules
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.32
- Referred to health
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Set Healthy Kids' Meal Rules
In Assembly Committee · Health · Sponsor Felix Ortiz
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
486
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE (Prefiled)
January 9, 2019
Introduced by Sens. RIVERA, KENNEDY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to setting nutrition standards for restaurants distributing incentive items aimed at children
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 1352-f to read as follows:
§ 1352-f. Incentive items with restaurant food. 1. For the purposes of this section, the following terms shall be defined as follows:
a. "Incentive item" shall mean any toy, game, trading card, admission ticket or other consumer product, whether physical or digital, with particular appeal to children, which is provided directly by the restaurant, or any coupon, voucher, ticket, token, code or password which is provided directly by the restaurant and is redeemable for or grants digital or other access to any toy, game, trading card, admission ticket, or other consumer product with particular appeal to children.
b. "Meal" shall mean any combination of food and drink items offered together for a single price.
c. "Restaurant" shall mean any coffee shop, cafeteria, luncheonette, sandwich stand, diner, short order cafe, fast food establishment, soda fountain, and any other eating or beverage establishment, which gives or offers for sale food or beverages to the public, guests, members, or patrons, whether food or beverages are customarily consumed on or off the premises.
2. The commissioner shall make regulations establishing nutritional standards for meals, food items, and beverages that may be offered for purchase in combination with an incentive item by a restaurant. A restaurant may offer an incentive item in combination with the purchase
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05464-01-9
S. 486 2
of a meal, food item, or beverage, only if the meal, food item, or beverage, meets nutritional standards established by the commissioner under this section. Nutritional standards under this section shall include but are not limited to: calories; sodium; percentage of calories from fat (which may differentiate among kinds or sources of fat); sugars and caloric sweeteners; and fruits, vegetables, and grains.
3. Any person who violates any of the provisions of this section shall be liable for a civil penalty of up to five hundred dollars for a first violation thereof; up to one thousand dollars for a second violation thereof; and up to two thousand five hundred dollars for a third or subsequent violation thereof.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to setting nutrition standards for restaurants distributing incentive items aimed at children
Purpose
This legislation will set standards by which fast food restaurants must adhere to with regard to the distribution of incentives with the purchase of children's meals. Meals will be required to fall within certain nutritional guidelines which will limit the amount of fat, sugar, calories and sodium per meal. If a meal that is geared for chil- dren falls outside of these guidelines, the restaurant will be forced to remove the incentive item.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends the Public Health Law by adding section 13524 which defines the terms:
Read the full memo (625 words)
- incentive item: any toy, game, trading card, admission ticket or other consumer product, whether physical or digital, with particular appeal to children, which is provided directly by the restaurant
- meal: any combination of food and drink items offered together for a single price
- restaurant: any coffee shop, cafeteria, luncheonette, sandwich stand, diner, short order cafe, fast food establishment, soda fountain, and any other eating or beverage establishment, which gives or offers for sale food or beverages to the public.
Section 1 also gives the commissioner the authority to establish nutri- tional standards for meals, food items, and beverages offered for purchase in combination with an incentive item by a restaurant. Penal- ties for violation of the provisions result in:
1st violation - up to $500 fine
2nd violation - up to $1,000 fine
3rd violation - up to $2,500 fine
Justification
Obesity in this country has grown into an alarming epidemic. According to a 2010 report, issued by the Center for Disease Control, 73 million Americans are obese - a large increase from the 2.4 million obese in 2007. Furthermore, about 13.7 million children (aged 2-19 years old) are considered obese. Obesity in children comes with increased health risks such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heightened likelihood for cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, among other risk factors. Nationally, the annual cost of providing inpatient treatment to children diagnosed with obesity increased from $125.9 million in 2001 to $217.6 million in 2005.
The food that is served in restaurants that is geared toward children is often the culprit in this obesity epidemic. Studies have shown a posi- tive association between eating out, higher caloric intakes, and higher body weights. Children often eat nearly twice as many calories (an aver- age of 770) when they eat a meal at a restaurant than they do when they eat at home (an average of 420). Also alarming is that meals served in restaurants often fail to meet the recommended healthy nutritional stan- dards set for children by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Restaurants are encouraging children to make these unhealthy choices by linking them, with a free toy or other incentive item. This legislation does not seek to ban these toys and incentives, but rather use them to reward healthier purchases. Linking toys with healthier options will reward our children for making better nutritional choices.
This legislation will improve the health of the children of New York State by setting healthy nutritional guidelines for children's meals that are served in restaurants and accompanied by toys or other incen- tive items. These standards will support families seeking healthy eating choices for their children. Children will be encouraged to make healthi- er choices when eating out.
Legislative history
2013-2014: S 937/ A5886 Ortiz 2015-2016: S 779-A/A6145-A Ortiz, Died in Codes 2017-2018: S1074/ A3375 Ortiz, Died in Rules
Fiscal implications
None to the State.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the 120th day after it shall become law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.