Regulation of Auxiliary Containers

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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to the regulation of auxiliary 2
containers; amending s. 403.703, F.S.; defining the 3
term "auxiliary container"; amending s. 403.7033, 4
F.S.; removing obsolete provisions that provide 5
legislative findings and require the Department of 6
Environmental Protection to review and update a 7
specified report; preempting the regulation of 8
auxiliary containers to the state; permitting rules, 9
regulations, and ordinances restricting the use of 10
glass auxiliary containers within the boundaries of a 11
public beach or state park; authorizing the Division 12
of Recreation and Parks to regulate auxiliary 13
containers within state parks; amending s. 403.707, 14
F.S.; conforming cross-references; providing an 15
effective date. 16
17
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 18
19
Section 1. Subsections (2) through (48) of section 20
403.703, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as sections (3) 21
through (49), respectively, present subsection (35) of that 22
section is amended, and a new subsection (2) is added to that 23
section, to read: 24
403.703 Definitions.—As used in this part, the term: 25

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(2) "Auxiliary container" means a reusable or single-use 26
bag, cup, bottle, can, or other packaging that meets both of the 27
following requirements: 28
(a) Is made of cloth; paper; plastic, including, but not 29
limited to, foamed plastic, expanded plastic, or polystyrene; 30
cardboard; corrugated material; molded fiber; aluminum; glass; 31
postconsumer recycled material; or similar material or 32
substrates, including coated, laminated, or multilayer 33
substrates. 34
(b) Is designed for transporting, consuming, or protecting 35
merchandise, food, or beverages from or at a public food service 36
establishment as defined in s. 509.013(5), a food establishment 37
as defined in s. 500.03(1), or a retailer as defined in s. 38
212.02(13). 39
(36)(35) "Solid waste" means sludge unregulated under the 40
federal Clean Water Act or Clean Air Act, sludge from a waste 41
treatment works, water supply treatment plant, or air pollution 42
control facility, or garbage, rubbish, refuse, special waste, or 43
other discarded material, including solid, liquid, semisolid, or 44
contained gaseous material resulting from domestic, industrial, 45
commercial, mining, agricultural, or governmental operations. 46
Recovered materials as defined in subsection (29) (28) and post-47
use polymers as defined in subsection (25) (24) are not solid 48
waste. 49
Section 2. Section 403.7033, Florida Statutes, is amended 50

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to read: 51
403.7033 Regulation of auxiliary containers Departmental 52
analysis of particular recyclable materials.—The Legislature 53
finds that prudent regulation of recyclable materials is crucial 54
to the ongoing welfare of Florida's ecology and economy. As 55
such, the Department of Environmental Protection shall review 56
and update its 2010 report on retail bags analyzing the need for 57
new or different regulation of auxiliary containers, wrappings, 58
or disposable plastic bags used by consumers to carry products 59
from retail establishments. The updated report must include 60
input from state and local government agencies, stakeholders, 61
private businesses, and citizens and must evaluate the efficacy 62
and necessity of both statewide and local regulation of these 63
materials. To ensure consistent and effective implementation, 64
the department shall submit the updated report with conclusions 65
and recommendations to the Legislature no later than December 66
31, 2021. Until such time that the Legislature adopts the 67
recommendations of the department, 68
(1) Except as provided in s. 500.90, the regulation of 69
auxiliary containers is expressly preempted to the state. A 70
local government, local governmental agency, or state 71
governmental agency may not enact or enforce any rule, 72
regulation, or ordinance regarding the use, disposition, sale, 73
prohibition, restriction, or tax of such auxiliary containers 74
unless authorized by general law. 75

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(2) A local government, local governmental agency, or 76
state governmental agency may adopt rules, regulations, or 77
ordinances restricting the use of glass auxiliary containers 78
within the boundaries of any public beach or state park within 79
its jurisdiction. 80
(3) The Division of Recreation and Parks of the Department 81
of Environmental Protection may adopt rules to regulate 82
auxiliary containers within state parks consistent with s. 83
258.004, wrappings, or disposable plastic bags. 84
Section 3. Paragraph (j) of subsection (9) of section 85
403.707, Florida Statutes, is amended, to read: 86
403.707 Permits.— 87
(9) The department shall establish a separate category for 88
solid waste management facilities that accept only construction 89
and demolition debris for disposal or recycling. The department 90
shall establish a reasonable schedule for existing facilities to 91
comply with this section to avoid undue hardship to such 92
facilities. However, a permitted solid waste disposal unit that 93
receives a significant amount of waste prior to the compliance 94
deadline established in this schedule shall not be required to 95
be retrofitted with liners or leachate control systems. 96
(j) The Legislature recognizes that recycling, waste 97
reduction, and resource recovery are important aspects of an 98
integrated solid waste management program and as such are 99
necessary to protect the public health and the environment. If 100

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necessary to promote such an integrated program, the county may 101
determine, after providing notice and an opportunity for a 102
hearing prior to April 30, 2008, that some or all of the 103
material described in s. 403.703(7)(b) s. 403.703(6)(b) shall be 104
excluded from the definition of "construction and demolition 105
debris" in s. 403.703(7) s. 403.703(6) within the jurisdiction 106
of such county. The county may make such a determination only if 107
it finds that, prior to June 1, 2007, the county has established 108
an adequate method for the use or recycling of such wood 109
material at an existing or proposed solid waste management 110
facility that is permitted or authorized by the department on 111
June 1, 2007. The county is not required to hold a hearing if 112
the county represents that it previously has held a hearing for 113
such purpose, or if the county represents that it previously has 114
held a public meeting or hearing that authorized such method for 115
the use or recycling of trash or other nonputrescible waste 116
materials and that such materials include those materials 117
described in s. 403.703(7)(b) s. 403.703(6)(b). The county shall 118
provide written notice of its determination to the department by 119
no later than April 30, 2008; thereafter, the materials 120
described in s. 403.703(7) s. 403.703(6) shall be excluded from 121
the definition of "construction and demolition debris" in s. 122
403.703(7) s. 403.703(6) within the jurisdiction of such county. 123
The county may withdraw or revoke its determination at any time 124
by providing written notice to the department. 125

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Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 126