Bill awaits signature by Gov. Jerry Brown
By Sam Catanzaro
Plastic straws, which have been shown in numerous studies to be one of the top-contributors to ocean pollution, have been the topic of debate in many municipalities throughout the state and now may become less prolific under legislation recently passed by California lawmakers.
On August 23, the California Legislature passed a bill that outlaws restaurants from dispensing plastic straws unless requested by customers.
“This bill would prohibit a full-service restaurant, as specified, from providing single-use plastic straws, as defined, to consumers unless requested by the consumer,” reads the bill passed by the lawmakers on the 23rd.
A full-service restaurant is defined in the bill as an “establishment with the primary business purpose of serving food, where food may be consumed on the premises, and where specified actions are taken by an employee of the establishment.”
University dining halls and order-at-the-counter restaurants like Chipotle and McDonalds do not qualify as “full-service restaurants,” under this definition and are thus are exempt from this law.
The bill states that the first and second violations of the law will result in a notice of violation. Any subsequent violation will be an infraction punishable by a fine of $25 for each day the restaurant continues to violate the law. Fines can exceed an annual total of $300.
The law will be enforced by the same officials who are authorized to enforce the California Retail Food Code.
“By creating a new crime and imposing additional enforcement duties on local health agencies, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program,” the bill reads.
Nothing in this bill prevents local governing bodies from adopting and implementing ordinances that further restrict restaurants from providing single-use plastic straws, as seen with the City of Santa Monica who recently banned all form of single-use plastics.
According to the California Coastal Commission, plastic straws among the top-10 items collected since 1984 in beach cleanups across the state.
The bill, which passed with a 45-20 vote, now awaits a signature by Governor Jerry Brown.
