Bill Text: NY A06529 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Requires chain restaurants to place an icon on menus next to food items that have a high content of sodium.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-04-01 - print number 6529a [A06529 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A06529-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6529

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                     April 13, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. REYES -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Health

        AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation  to  requiring  chain
          restaurants to label menu items that have a high content of sodium

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding  a  new  section
     2  1357 to read as follows:
     3    §  1357.  Chain  restaurants;  sodium content of menu items. 1.  Defi-
     4  nitions. For purposes of this section the following terms shall have the
     5  following meanings:
     6    a.  "Chain menu developer" means the person that owns and licenses the
     7  brand name under which a chain restaurant does business,  or  any  other
     8  person  responsible  for  determining  the  formula  or recipe for items
     9  displayed on the menu of a chain restaurant.
    10    b. "Chain restaurant" means a food service establishment,  as  defined
    11  in part fourteen of the New York sanitary code 10 NYCRR 14-1.20, that is
    12  part  of  a  chain with fifteen or more locations within the state doing
    13  business under the same name, regardless of the type of ownership of the
    14  locations, and offering for sale substantially similar menu items.
    15    c. "Daily value" means the daily reference value used  by  the  United
    16  States  Food  and  Drug  Administration in calculating the percent daily
    17  value for nutrition information provided on food labels.
    18    d. "Menu or menu board" means the primary writing of  a  food  service
    19  establishment from which a customer makes an order selection, including,
    20  but  not  limited to, breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus; dessert menus;
    21  beverage menus; children's  menus;  other  specialty  menus;  electronic
    22  menus; and menus on the internet.
    23    e.  "Standard  menu item" means a food or beverage item that is listed
    24  on a menu or menu board, excluding temporary menu items appearing on the
    25  menu for less than sixty days per calendar year.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05818-02-3
        A. 6529                             2

     1    2. Industry guidance. No later than one year after the effective  date
     2  of  this  section,  the department shall publish guidance explaining the
     3  requirements of this section and how businesses can comply.
     4    3.    Sodium  warning icon. No later than one year after the effective
     5  date of this section, the department shall develop an icon with accompa-
     6  nying text that shall be displayed adjacent to the name of any  standard
     7  menu  item  that exceeds the daily value for sodium. Beginning two years
     8  after the effective date of this section any chain restaurant  operating
     9  within  the  state  and  not otherwise exempted under subdivision six of
    10  this  section shall display on menus or menu boards:
    11    a.  The sodium warning icon and accompanying text promulgated  by  the
    12  department pursuant to this subdivision, at a height no smaller than the
    13  largest letter in the name of the item; and
    14    b. The following factual statement explaining the sodium warning icon:
    15  "Warning  (insert  icon image and accompanying text here) indicates that
    16  the sodium (salt) content of this item is higher than  the  total  daily
    17  recommended limit (2300 mg). High sodium intake can increase blood pres-
    18  sure and the risk of heart disease and stroke."
    19    4.    Chain  menu  developer  reporting requirement. Once every ninety
    20  days, each chain menu developer  shall  report  to  the  department  the
    21  amount  of  sodium  in each standard menu item offered for sale in their
    22  chain restaurant, or that no changes to the menu information  have  been
    23  made since the last report.
    24    5.   Report required. No later than six years after the effective date
    25  of this section, the department shall issue a report reviewing  evidence
    26  of  the  impact  of this section on menu item reformulation and consumer
    27  behavior, and recommend additional nutrients that should  be  considered
    28  for menu warning icons.
    29    6.  Violations.   Any chain restaurant that violates the provisions of
    30  this section shall be subject to a civil penalty of not  more  than  two
    31  hundred fifty dollars per day for each location not in compliance.
    32    7.  Exemptions.  The sodium warning icon required pursuant to subdivi-
    33  sion three of this section shall not be required to be displayed next to
    34  a menu item that is already labeled with a sodium icon equal or  greater
    35  in  size  and  similar in general appearance, when such icon is required
    36  pursuant to a rule, regulation, ordinance, local law,  order  or  policy
    37  issued  by another jurisdiction having the same or substantially similar
    38  effect as determined by the commissioner.  Food  service  establishments
    39  exempted  from  the sodium warning labeling requirement by this subdivi-
    40  sion shall be used in determining if a particular  food  service  estab-
    41  lishment is a chain restaurant.
    42    § 2. Severability. If any provision of this act, or any application of
    43  any provision of this act, is held to be invalid, or to  violate  or  be
    44  inconsistent  with  any federal law or regulation, that shall not affect
    45  the validity or effectiveness of any other provision of this act, or  of
    46  any  other  application of any provision of this act, which can be given
    47  effect without that provision or  application;  and  to  that  end,  the
    48  provisions and applications of this act are severable.
    49    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.