Revision: Jan. 15, 2019, 1:13 p.m.
HB 559 - AS INTRODUCED
2019 SESSION
19-0463
06/01
HOUSE BILL 559
AN ACT enabling municipalities to ban single-use sources of plastic pollution.
SPONSORS: Rep. Spang, Straf. 6; Rep. Gilman, Rock. 18; Rep. Luneau, Merr. 10; Sen. Fuller Clark, Dist 21
COMMITTEE: Municipal and County Government
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ANALYSIS
This bill enables municipalities to prohibit the distribution, sale, and purchase of products that contribute to plastic pollution.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
19-0463
06/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Nineteen
AN ACT enabling municipalities to ban single-use sources of plastic pollution.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Solid Waste Management; Definition; Refuse. Amend RSA 149-M:4, XXI to read as follows:
XXI. "Refuse" means and includes any waste product, solid or having the character of a solid rather than a liquid in that it will not flow readily without additional liquid, and which is composed wholly or partly of such materials as garbage, plastic, swill, sweepings, cleanings, trash, rubbish, litter, industrial or domestic solid wastes; organic wastes or residue of animals sold as meat; fruit, vegetable or animal matter from kitchens, dining rooms, markets, food establishments or any places dealing in or handling meat, fowl, fruits, grain or vegetables; offal, animal excreta, or the carcasses of animals; construction and demolition debris; or accumulated waste material, cans, containers, tires, junk, or other such substances which may become a nuisance.
2 New Section; Optional Ban on Single-Use Sources of Plastic Pollution. Amend RSA 149-M by inserting after section 31 the following new section:
149-M:31-a Optional Ban on Single-Use Sources of Plastic Pollution. Any locality may by ordinance prohibit the distribution, sale, and purchase of products that contribute to plastic pollution which is harming the New Hampshire environment, including the coastal marine environment. This prohibition may include, but is not limited to, local bans on the free distribution of disposable plastic shopping bags to consumers and the regulation of other commonly littered items, such as expanded polystyrene foam food containers, drink lids, cups, cutlery, beverage straws, and the intentional release of helium-filled balloons.
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.