What's happening
This bill requires all eating utensils in New York state correctional facilities to be made only from plastic or composite materials.
Why it matters
Aims to reduce the availability of metal utensils in prisons, which are sometimes repurposed as weapons. , potentially improving safety for both staff and incarcerated individuals.
May impact daily operations and costs. by requiring correctional facilities to source and provide only plastic or composite eating utensils, possibly leading to increased expenses or logistical adjustments.
Could have environmental implications. , as increased use of single-use or disposable plastic utensils may contribute to waste, unless reusable composite options are prioritized.
Standardizes utensil material across all dining settings within correctional facilities. , ensuring no exceptions for commissaries or special areas, which could simplify enforcement and compliance.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Plastic Utensils in Prisons
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to crime victims, crime and correction
- Referred to crime victims, crime and correction
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
882
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE (Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
Introduced by Sen. GALLIVAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Crime Victims, Crime and Correction
AN ACT to amend the correction law, in relation to providing plastic or composite eating utensils at state correctional facilities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The correction law is amended by adding a new section 628 to read as follows:
§ 628. Eating utensils. All eating utensils provided by state correctional facilities to individuals housed in such facilities for use in cafeterias, mess halls, canteens, commissaries, or any other dining facility located within, shall be made solely from plastic or another composite material.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02879-01-5
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the correction law, in relation to providing plastic or composite eating utensils at state correctional facilities
Purpose
To mitigate the danger to corrections officers and inmates of metal utensils used as weapons by ensuring state correctional facilities only provide plastic or composite eating utensils in facility dining areas
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends the correction law by adding new section 625 providing that all eating utensils provided by state correction facilities must be made solely from plastic or another composite material.
Section 2 provides the effective date.
Justification
In 2017, the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision reported 798 assaults on corrections staff statewide, and 1,220 assaults on inmates by other inmates. These unfortunate statistics remind us that safety must always remain a top priority in our correc- tional facilities. To ensure that safety, our facilities must make every effort to avoid inmate access to objects or implements that may readily be used to harm other inmates, or the corrections officers who put their lives on the line every day to serve our communities.
Metal utensils in correctional facility dining areas have proven to be a significant safety risk for staff and inmates alike. On March 9, 2018, in one of our state's medium security facilities, an inmate used a metal fork to stab another inmate in the head. The assaulted inmate retaliated by punching and then stabbing the attacker with his own metal fork. After the assault escalated, corrections officers were forced to step in and break up the fight. The metal dining utensils used by these inmates in this altercation were utensils provided by the correctional facility in its dining area.
This violent use of metal utensils as weapons is not an isolated inci- dent. Many correctional facilities have eliminated metal utensils for inmates in dining facilities based on this risk. In light of the recent assault and known dangers, this bill would require that state correc- tional facilities only provide inmates with utensils made solely of plastic or another composite material in cafeterias, mess halls, and other dining areas as defined. While the risk of violence is always present in correctional facilities, we must make every effort to ensure the safety of our corrections officers, and of the inmates housed in those facilities.
Legislative history
2023-24: S.4483/A.1770 Referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction
2021-22: S.1931/A.493 Referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction 2019-20: S.1202/A.1591 Referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction
2018: S.8206 Reported to Finance/Referred to Correction
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.