Bill > S671

Introduced Session

This bill would prohibit food service businesses in the State from providing customers with single-use utensils or condiments, under certain circumstances. Specifically, the bill would provide that, commencing on the first day of the seventh month after the bill's enactment: (1) no full-service restaurant that has on-site seating capacity for 10 or more customers operating in the State would be authorized to provide single use utensils or condiments to its on-site customers, (2) casual dining establishments operating in the State would be authorized to provide single-use utensils or condiments to a customer only upon the express request of that customer, and (3) an online ordering application for any food service business may allow customers to request single-use utensils or condiments for take-out meals, provided that the default selection is "no utensils or condiments," and the food service business would bear final responsibility for ensuring that no utensils or condiments are provided except upon request. Under the bill, a casual dining establishment that is unable to accommodate a verbal request for single-use utensils or condiments would be authorized to provide a utensil dispenser for customers to use. The bill defines "utensil dispenser" as a dedicated appliance for the dispensing of food utensils, which dispenses a single-use utensil at the push of a button, lever, or other similar method. Under the bill, "utensil dispenser" does not include an open tray or other similar system from which more than one single-use utensil may be taken at a time but the bill provides an exception for sports arenas and entertainment centers. The bill would exempt pre-packaged food items delivered to a food service business, which have a single-use utensil attached to it as a part of the item's manufacturing process. Additionally, public or nonpublic elementary or secondary schools in the State offering K-12 education, health care facilities licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.), and county and State correctional facilities would be exempt from the bill's provisions. Any food service business that elects to supply customers with single-use utensils or condiments, upon customer request, as authorized by the bill, would be required to provide each customer with only those types and amounts of single-use utensils and condiments that have been expressly requested by the customer. Beginning 12 months after the bill's effective date, a food service business would also be prohibited from creating, acquiring, or providing customers with bundled utensil or condiment packages that contain more than one type of single-use plastic utensil or condiment. Any food service business that violates the bill's provisions would be subject to a warning for the first offense, a civil penalty of $1,000 for the second offense, and a civil penalty of $2,500 for the third and each subsequent offense, to be collected through a summary proceeding, and each day on which a violation occurs would constitute a separate and distinct offense. Any moneys collected from penalties imposed pursuant to the bill would be deposited into the "Clean Communities Program Fund" for use in financing litter pickup, removal, education, and enforcement programs at the State and local levels, except that municipalities and county environmental enforcement agencies would be permitted to retain 30 percent of the moneys. The bill would require the Department of Environmental Protection, to develop a 180-day education campaign to educate citizens of the State on the financial and environmental benefits of reducing the amount of single-use utensils and condiments offered without necessity, and to encourage responsible use by reminding individuals not to take more items than needed from a self-serve condiment station or utensil dispenser. The bill would prohibit municipalities and counties from adopting a rule, regulation, code or ordinance concerning the regulation or prohibition of single-use utensils or condiments after the bill's effective date and the bill's provisions would supersede any municipal or county rule, regulation, code, or ordinance concerning the regulation or prohibition of single-use utensils or condiments that was enacted prior to the effective date of the bill. Finally, the bill would amend P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 et al.), which prohibits the distribution of plastic bags and polystyrene food serviceware, to provide that entities certified pursuant to the "County Environmental Health Act," P.L.1977, c.443 (C.26:3A2-21 et seq.), would have primary enforcement responsibility for P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 et al.).

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Raj Mukherji (D)*,  Bob Smith (D)*,  Patrick Diegnan (D),  Linda Greenstein (D),  John McKeon (D),  Britnee Timberlake (D),  Benjie Wimberly (D),  Andrew Zwicker (D), 

Withdrawn Because Approved P.L.2025, c.298. (on 01/13/2026)

Official Document