Authorizes grocery stores to provide certain single-use paper carryout bags to customers.

A1987

ASSEMBLY, No. 1987

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Assemblyman WILLIAM B. SAMPSON, IV

District 31 (Hudson)

SYNOPSIS

���� Authorizes grocery stores to provide certain
single-use paper carryout bags to customers.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning paper carryout bags and amending P.L.2020,
c.117.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� Section 1 of P.L.2020,
c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126) is amended to read as follows:

���� 1.��� The Legislature finds
and declares that, since 1950, global annual production of plastics has
increased from two million tons to over 381 million tons; that approximately
one third of all plastics produced are single-use plastics, which are plastics
designed to be used only once and then thrown away; and that an estimated 100
billion single-use plastic carryout bags and 25 billion styrofoam plastic
coffee cups are thrown away in the United States each year.

���� The Legislature further finds
that, in 2017, only 8.4 percent of plastics in the United States were recycled;
that most single-use plastics are disposed of in landfills, are incinerated, or
become litter in waterways and oceans; that plastics released in the
environment do not biodegrade, but instead break down into smaller pieces,
known as microplastics, which accumulate in the natural environment and are
eaten by fish and other marine life; and that microplastic pollution moves
through natural food webs and accumulates in fish and shellfish tissues, which
means microplastics and associated pollutants can move into the food chain.

���� The Legislature further finds
that approximately eight million tons of plastic end up in the oceans annually;
that, without action, scientists estimate that by 2050 the mass of plastic
pollution in the ocean will exceed the mass of fish; that currently, there is a
collection of litter in the North Pacific Ocean, known as the Great Pacific
Garbage Patch, that is 7.7 million square miles and is composed primarily of
plastics; that one study found plastics in the gut of every sea turtle examined
and in 90 percent of seabirds examined; and that plastics have been known to
cause death or reproductive failure in sea turtles, birds, and other organisms
that ingest plastic.

���� The Legislature further finds
that, as plastics break down through photodegradation, they release harmful
chemicals such as bisphenol A (BPA) into the environment that have been linked
to health problems in humans; that these chemicals enter the food chain when
consumed by marine life; and that single-use plastic waste creates visual
pollution, degrades water quality, and impacts the tourism, fishing, and
shipping industries, all of which are major contributors to the New Jersey
economy.

���� The Legislature therefore
determines that it is no longer conscionable to permit the unfettered use and
disposal of single-use plastics in the State; that New Jersey must do its part
to minimize plastic pollution in the ocean, and to ensure that future generations
have a clean and healthy environment to live, work, and recreate in; that
banning or limiting the use of single-use plastic carryout bags, polystyrene
foam food service products, and single-use plastic straws is a significant step
in this effort, as these items are among the most significant sources of beach
and ocean pollution; that New Jersey joins several other states and hundreds of
municipalities across the country in banning or limiting the use of single-use
plastics; and that such bans and limitations have drastically lowered consumer
consumption of single-use plastics.

���� The Legislature further finds
that single-use paper carryout bags use as much or more energy and resources to
manufacture and transport than single-use plastic carryout bags and contribute
to harmful air emissions.� Consequently, the Legislature further determines
that it is in the public interest to prohibit grocery stores from providing
single-use paper carryout bags
, unless they contain a significant quantity
of postconsumer recycled content
.

���� The Legislature further finds
that the State's nascent hemp-growing industry, regulated through the New
Jersey Department of Agriculture's Division of Plant Industry, would be a
significant force in creating biodegradable raw materials that can be turned
into hemp-based bio-packaging, which breaks down in approximately 90 days
versus the dozens of years it takes petroleum-based plastics to break down into
microplastics in the ocean.

(cf:� P.L.2020, c.117, s.1)

���� 2.��� Section 2 of P.L.2020,
c.117 (C.13:1E-99.127) is amended to read as follows:

���� 2.��� As used in P.L.2020,
c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 et al.):

���� "Carryout bag" means
a bag that is provided by a store or food service business to a customer for
the purpose of transporting groceries, prepared foods, or retail goods.�
"Carryout bag" shall not include:

���� (1)� a bag used solely to
contain or wrap uncooked meat, fish, or poultry;

���� (2)� a bag used solely to
package loose items such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, coffee, grains, baked
goods, candy, greeting cards, flowers, or small hardware items;

���� (3)� a bag used solely to
contain live animals, such as fish or insects sold in a pet store;

���� (4)� a bag used solely to
contain food sliced or prepared to order, including soup or hot food;

���� (5)� a laundry, dry cleaning,
or garment bag;

���� (6)� a bag provided by a
pharmacy to carry prescription drugs;

���� (7)� a newspaper bag; and

���� (8)� any similar bag, as
determined by the department pursuant to rule, regulation, or guidance.

���� "Department" means
the Department of Environmental Protection.

���� "Food service
business" means a business that sells or provides food for consumption on
or off the premises, and includes, but is not limited to, any restaurant, caf�,
delicatessen, coffee shop, convenience store, grocery store, vending truck or
cart, food truck, movie theater, or business or institutional cafeteria,
including those operated by or on behalf of any governmental entity.

���� "Grocery store"
means a self-service retail establishment that occupies at least 2,500 square
feet and that sells household foodstuffs for off-site consumption, including,
but not limited to, fresh produce, meat, poultry, fish, deli products, dairy
products, canned foods, dry foods, beverages, baked foods, or prepared foods.�
"Grocery store" shall not include an establishment that handles only
prepackaged food that does not require time or temperature controls for food
safety.

���� "Hemp product" means
a finished product with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not
more than 0.3 percent that is derived from or made by processing a hemp plant
or plant part and prepared in a form available for commercial sale.

���� "Person" means any
individual, corporation, company, association, society, firm, partnership,
joint stock company, or governmental entity.

���� "Plastic" means a
synthetic material made from linking monomers through a chemical reaction to
create an organic polymer chain that can be molded or extruded at high heat
into various solid forms retaining their defined shapes during the life cycle
and after disposal.�

���� "Polystyrene foam"
means blown polystyrene and expanded and extruded foams that are thermoplastic
petrochemical materials utilizing a styrene monomer and processed by a number
of techniques, including, but not limited to, fusion of polymer spheres
(expandable bead polystyrene), injection molding, foam molding, and
extrusion-blow molding (extruded foam polystyrene).

���� "Polystyrene foam food
service product" means a product made, in whole or in part, of polystyrene
foam that is used for selling or providing a food or beverage, and includes,
but is not limited to, a food container, plate, hot or cold beverage cup, meat
or vegetable tray, cutlery, or egg carton.

���� "Reusable carryout
bag" means a carryout bag that:� (1) is made of polypropylene, PET
nonwoven fabric, nylon, cloth, hemp product, or other machine washable fabric;
(2) has stitched handles; and (3) is designed and manufactured for multiple reuse.

���� "Single-use paper
carryout bag" means a carryout bag made of paper that is not a reusable
carryout bag.

���� "Single-use plastic
carryout bag" means a carryout bag made of plastic that is not a reusable
carryout bag.

���� "Store" means any
grocery store, convenience store, liquor store, pharmacy, drug store, or other
retail establishment.

����
"Sustainable paper
carryout bag" means a single-use paper carryout bag that meets or exceeds
the postconsumer recycled content requirements of section 6 of P.L.2021, c.391
(C.13:1E-99.140).

(cf:� P.L.2020, c.117, s.2)

���� 3.� Section 3 of P.L.2020,
c.117 (C.13:1E-99.128) is amended to read as follows:

���� 3. a. Beginning 18 months
after the effective date of P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 et al.):

���� (1)� no store or food service
business shall provide or sell a single-use plastic carryout bag to a customer;
and

���� (2)� no grocery store shall
provide or sell a single-use paper carryout bag
that is not a sustainable
paper carryout bag
to a customer.

���� b.��� A municipality or county
shall not adopt any rule, regulation, code, or ordinance concerning the
regulation or prohibition of single-use plastic carryout bags or single-use
paper carryout bags after the effective date of P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126
et al.).

���� c.��� Beginning 18 months
after the effective date of P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 et al.), this
section shall supersede and preempt any municipal or county rule, regulation,
code, or ordinance concerning the regulation or prohibition of single-use
plastic carryout bags or single-use paper carryout bags that was enacted prior
to the effective date of P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 et al.).

���� d.��� Notwithstanding the
provisions of subsection a. of this section to the contrary, beginning 24
months after the effective date of P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 et al.), no
food bank or food pantry shall provide a single-use plastic carryout bag to a
customer.

���� As used in this subsection:

���� "Food bank" means
the same as the term is defined in section 2 of P.L.1982, c.178 (C.24:4A-2).

���� "Food pantry" means
a nonprofit organization or government entity that distributes food to
individuals in need of assistance, including, but not limited to, a soup
kitchen, homeless shelter, or religious organization.

(cf:� P.L.2022, c.6, s.1)

���� 4.� This act shall take effect
immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill would amend
P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 et seq.) to authorize grocery stores to provide
single-use paper carryout bags to their customers, provided that the bags
contain a certain percentage of postconsumer recycled content.� Specifically, the
bags would be required to meet or exceed the postconsumer recycled content
requirements of section 6 of P.L.2021, c.391 (C.13:1E-99.140).� Under that
section of law, paper carryout bags are required to contain, on average, at
least 40 percent postconsumer recycled content; except that a paper carryout
bag that holds eight pounds or less is required to contain, on average, at
least 20 percent postconsumer recycled content.