HB 1471-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2022 SESSION
22-2611
12/08
HOUSE BILL 1471-FN
AN ACT to eliminate single-use plastic carry-out bags.
SPONSORS: Rep. Toll, Ches. 16; Rep. Labranche, Hills. 22; Rep. Welkowitz, Ches. 4; Rep. Perez, Hills. 23; Rep. Hyland, Hills. 38; Rep. Massimilla, Graf. 1; Rep. Meuse, Rock. 29; Rep. Grassie, Straf. 11; Rep. Egan, Graf. 2; Rep. Kenney, Straf. 6; Sen. Watters, Dist 4
COMMITTEE: Commerce and Consumer Affairs
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ANALYSIS
This bill prohibits the distribution of single-use carry-out plastic bags to a customer, subject to certain exceptions.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
22-2611
12/08
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two
AN ACT to eliminate single-use plastic carry-out bags.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Subdivision; Plastic Bag Reduction. Amend RSA 149-M by inserting after section 61 the following new subdivision:
Plastic Bag Reduction
149-M:62 Definitions. In this subdivision:
I. "Plastic" means an organic or petroleum derivative synthetic or a semisynthetic organic solid that is moldable, and to which additives or other substances may have been added. "Plastic" does not include natural polymers that have not been chemically modified.
II. "Point of sale" means a check-out stand, cash register or other point of departure from a retail establishment.
III. "Post-consumer recycled material" means a recycled material that if not recycled would otherwise have been destined for solid waste disposal, having completed its intended end use and product life cycle. "Post-consumer recycled material" does not include materials and by products generated from, and commonly reused in, an original manufacturing and fabrication process.
IV. "Recycled paper bag" means a paper bag that:
(a) Is 100 percent recyclable; and
(b) Contains at least 20 percent post-consumer recycled material if it has a capacity to hold at least 8 pounds,
V. "Food service establishment" means a food service establishment as defined in RSA 143-A:3.
VI. "Retail establishment" means a store, a food service establishment, or a temporary business.
VII. "Reusable bag" means a bag with handles that:
(a) Is designed and manufactured to withstand a minimum of 75 repeated uses;
(b) Is machine washable or made from a material that can be cleaned and disinfected regularly;
(c) If made from plastic is at least 4 mils thick; and
(d) Has the capability of carrying a minimum of 18 pounds.
VIII. "Single-use carry-out bag" means a bag that is made of plastic, paper or other material provided by a retail establishment at the point of sale for the purpose of transporting merchandise away from the retail establishment and that is not a recycled paper bag or a reusable bag.
IX. "Store" means a retail store that engages in the retail sale of merchandise, including food, goods, products and clothing. "Store" includes grocery stores primarily engaged in the retail sale of canned food, dry goods, fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh meats, fish and poultry and convenience stores engaged in the sale of a limited line of goods, including milk, bread, soda and snack foods, and prepared foods intended to be consumed off the premises.
X. "Temporary business" means a seasonal or nonpermanent retail establishment such as a farmers' market or fair that sells merchandise including food, goods, products or clothing.
149-M:63 Prohibition; Exemptions.
I. Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, beginning January 1, 2023, a retail establishment shall not provide a single-use carry-out bag to a customer at the point of sale or otherwise make single-use carry-out bags available to customers.
II. The prohibition in paragraph I does not apply to:
(a) Bags provided by a pharmacy to a customer for transporting a prescription medication away from the store;
(b) Bags without handles used to protect items from being damaged or from damaging or contaminating other purchased items placed in a recycled paper bag or a reusable bag;
(c) Bags used by customers inside a retail establishment to package loose items, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, coffee, grains, bakery goods, candy, greeting cards or small hardware items; to contain or wrap frozen foods, meats or fish; or to contain or wrap flowers or potted plants;
(d) Laundry, dry cleaning or garment bags, including bags provided by a hotel to guests to contain wet or dirty clothing or bags provided to protect large garments like suits, jackets or dresses;
(e) Newspaper bags;
(f) Bags sold in packages containing multiple bags intended to contain garbage, pet waste or yard waste;
(g) Bags used to contain live animals, such as fish or insects sold in pet stores;
(h) Bags used for vehicle tires;
(i) Bags used to transport chemical pesticides, drain cleaning chemicals or other caustic chemicals sold at a retail establishment;
(j) Bags used by a hunger relief organization such as a food pantry or soup kitchen to distribute food directly to the consumer at no charge;
(k) Bags that customers bring to the retail establishment for their own use or for carrying away from the retail establishment goods that are not placed in a bag provided by the retail establishment.
III. A retail establishment may make single-use carry-out bags made of plastic, that are exempted in paragraph II, available to customers to bag products within the retail establishment other than at the point of sale only if the retail establishment:
(a) Locates inside the retail establishment or within 20 feet of the main entrance to the retail establishment a receptacle for collecting any used single-use carry-out bags made of plastic; and
(b) Ensures that single-use carry-out bags made of plastic that are collected by the retail establishment are recycled or delivered to a person engaged in recycling plastics.
149-M:64 Recycled Paper Bag Fees and Reusable Plastic Bag Fees; Exemptions.
I. Beginning January 1, 2023 a retail establishment may use a recycled paper bag or a reusable bag made of plastic to bag products at the point of sale as long as the retail establishment charges a fee of at least 5 cents per bag.
(1) All amounts collected pursuant to this paragraph are retained by the retail establishment and may be used for any lawful purpose.
(2) A retail establishment may not rebate or otherwise reimburse a customer any portion of the fee charged pursuant to this paragraph.
II. The requirement to charge a fee under paragraph I does not apply to:
(a) Stores at which less than 2 percent of retail sales are attributed to the sale of food and that have less than 10,000 square feet of retail area;
(b) food service establishments; or
(c) Hunger relief organizations engaged in distributing food directly to consumers at no charge.
III. A retail establishment exempt from charging a fee under paragraph II may charge a fee for a recycled paper bag or a reusable bag made of plastic.
149-M:65 Violations. Notwithstanding RSA 149-M:16, the commissioner shall establish fines for violations of this subdivision of not less than $100 and not more than $10,000 for each day of that violation, provided however the maximum civil penalty may exceed $10,000 for each day of that violation, but may not exceed $25,000 for each day of the violation, when it can be shown that there has been a previous violation of the same law by the same party within the 5 preceding years.
149-M:66 Preemption. To ensure maximum effectiveness through uniform statewide application, the State intends to occupy the whole field of regulation of single-use carry-out bags at retail establishments beginning January 1, 2023. A local government may not adopt an ordinance regulating single-use carry-out bags at retail establishments and, beginning April 22, 2020, any ordinance or regulation that violates this subdivision is void and has no force or effect.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
22-2611
11/22/21
HB 1471-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT to eliminate single-use plastic carry-out bags.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ ] Local [ ] None
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| Estimated Increase / (Decrease) | |||
STATE: | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 | FY 2025 |
Appropriation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Revenue | $0 | Indeterminable | Indeterminable | Indeterminable |
Expenditures | $0 | $91,000+ | $92,000+ | $96,000+ |
Funding Source: | [ X ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ X ] Other - Liquor Fund | |||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill prohibits the distribution of single-use carry-out plastic bags at the point of sale starting January 1, 2023. Certain types of single-use plastic bags would be exempt from this prohibition, such as produce bags, laundry/dry-cleaning bags, garbage bags, etc., however, for retail establishments to distribute exempted bags to customers, the establishment must implement and install an on-site collection area for recycling single-use plastic bags. This bill also allows retail establishments to provide recycled paper bags or reusable plastic bags for bagging at the point of sale, but requires the retail establishment to charge a fee of at least five cents ($0.05) per bag (retained by the retail establishment). Certain retail establishments would be exempt from the requirement to charge a fee for recycled paper bags or reusable bags made of plastic, but exempted retail establishments would be able to charge a fee if they chose to do so.
The Department of Environmental Services states this bill would result in the need for an additional position (program specialist III, labor grade 23) as responsibilities placed on it by this bill extend beyond the scope of their existing program resources. The cost for this position is estimated to be $91,000 in FY 2023, $92,000 in FY 2024, and $96,000 in FY 2025. The Department states it expects it would incur other expenses beyond this position to administer this bill. This bill may also increase state revenues to the extent a state entity conducting business, such as the Liquor Commission, charges the $0.05/bag fee. Total revenue from this is indeterminable as it is not known how this legislation would impact consumer behavior. Lastly, the state also may receive additional revenue through fines collected from enforcement actions, which is assumed would be credited to the general fund.
It should be noted this bill provides neither an appropriation nor authority for the establishment of a new position.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Environmental Services
Dec. 1, 2021: To Be Introduced 01/05/2022 and referred to Commerce and Consumer Affairs