Bill H.4827

FILED ON: 5/27/2022

HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 4827

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Second General Court
(2021-2022)

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An Act to reduce single-use plastics from the environment.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. The General Laws are hereby amended by inserting after chapter 21P the following chapter:-

Chapter 21Q.

Section 1. Definitions. As used in this chapter, the following words shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly requires otherwise:

“Biodegradable”, made entirely of organic materials, including wood, paper, bagasse and cellulose, or bioplastics that meet industry standards for biodegradable plastics.

“Compostable”, made entirely of material capable of being broken down or decomposed at the end of its useful life into a beneficial soil amendment or conditioner.

“Department”, the department of environmental protection.

“Disposable”, designed to be discarded after a single or limited number of uses and not designed or manufactured for long-term multiple reuse.

“Food facility”, an operation that stores, prepares, packages, serves, vends, or otherwise provides food to the public for human consumption, regardless of the intended location of such consumption.

“Food service ware”, disposable products used for serving or transporting foods or beverages for human consumption, including without limitation plates, bowls, trays, cups, cartons, hinged or lidded containers, straws, stirrers, cup spill plugs, cup sleeves, condiments containers, utensils, cocktail sticks/picks, toothpicks, film wrap, and napkins. Food service ware does not include detachable lids for beverage cups or food containers, coolers or ice chests.

“Retail establishment”, a store or premises in which a person is engaged in the business of selling or providing merchandise, goods, foods, or item servicing directly to customers, including, but not limited to, grocery stores, department stores, pharmacies, convenience stores, restaurants, coffee shops, food trucks and other mobile businesses, and seasonal and temporary businesses, such as farmers markets and public markets; provided, however, that a “retail establishment” shall include a non-profit organization, charity or religious institution that holds itself out to the public as engaging and does engage in retail activities that are characteristic of similar type retail businesses, whether or not for profit when engaging in such activity.

Section 2. (a) A food facility shall not provide a customer with disposable food service ware unless such food service ware is recyclable, biodegradable or compostable; provided, however, that drinking straws that are not recyclable, biodegradable or compostable may be provided to a customer upon request by the customer.

(b) A food facility may charge a customer a fee for disposable food service ware; provided, however, that any such fee charged pursuant to this section shall not be subject to taxation pursuant to chapter 64H or 64I; and provided further, that a food facility charging a fee pursuant to this section shall retain the entirety of any such fee charged.

(c) A food facility that violates this section shall be subject to a warning for a first violation, a civil penalty of $150 for a second violation and a civil penalty of $300 for a third and each subsequent violation. Each day a food facility is in violation of this section shall be considered a separate violation.

Section 3. No retail establishment shall sell or otherwise provide to a consumer alcoholic beverages in plastic containers less than or equal to 100 milliliters. A retail establishment that violates this section shall be subject to a warning for a first violation, a civil penalty of $150 for a second violation and a civil penalty of $300 for a third and each subsequent violation. Each day a retail establishment is in violation of this section shall be considered a separate violation.

Section 4. A retail establishment or food facility shall be exempt from the requirements of sections 2, 3, and 4 if the retail establishment or food facility: (i) has not more than 3 store locations under the same ownership and each store location has less than 4,000 square feet of retail selling space and not more than 15 employees; and (ii) annually submits to the department an affidavit attesting that the retail establishment or food facility meets the requirements of this subsection.

Section 5. The department shall retain civil penalties collected for violations of this chapter. Monies collected pursuant to this chapter shall be expended to fund existing and future municipal recycling and waste management grant programs. Except as otherwise provided, the department shall promulgate regulations to implement the provisions of this chapter.

SECTION 2. There shall be a special commission to examine opportunities for Massachusetts farms and agricultural lands to play a larger role in the Commonwealth's composting systems.

The commission shall be tasked with examining the role of farms in a statewide composting system, including but not limited to residential and commercial compostable waste, and local feedstocks. . The commission shall also study the impact of increasing the amount of organic feedstock and residential and commercial compostable waste being composted and sequestered in farm soils, turf areas, and forest lands. The commission shall also examine if farms should receive priority access to state-led infrastructure development, technical supports and financial resources to make decarbonization central to their operations. The commission shall also be tasked with developing relevant metrics, as determined by the commission, including but not limited to metrics for increasing carbon soil content over an established base line over 5-year intervals in order to provide efficacy data for carbon stored.

The Commission shall consist of 15 members: 1 of whom shall be the commissioner of the department of agricultural resources or a designee who shall serve as Chairman, Commission, 1 of whom shall be the commissioner of the department of environmental protection or a designee, 1 of whom shall be a representative of the Massachusetts Municipal Association; 1 of whom shall be a representative of the Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation, 1 of whom shall be a representative of the UMass Cooperative Extension, 1 of whom shall be a representative of the Massachusetts chapter of the Northeast Organic Farming Association, 1 of whom shall be a representative of urban farmers, 1 of whom shall be a representative of the state Buy Local network, 1 of whom shall be a representative of the Center for EcoTechnology, 2 of whom shall be the respective house and senate chairs of the joint committee on environment, natural resources, and agriculture, and 4 members appointed by the governor who are involved in various agricultural activities. The commission shall convene its first meeting not later than March 1, 2023 and shall file a report along with any recommendations for legislative reform not later than August 31, 2023 with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the chairs of the senate and house committees on ways and means, and the chairs of the joint committee on environment, natural resources, and agriculture.

The department of environmental protection, in consultation with the department of agricultural resources, shall prepare a plan to establish comprehensive statewide composting that includes recommendations from the commission and is publicly accessible. The plan shall be designed to increase the rate at which food and organic waste is composted and reduce the contamination of waste and recycling streams by compostable materials. Not later than December 31, 2023, the department shall submit to the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on the environment, natural resources and agriculture a report stating the plan and indicating any resources necessary to implement the plan. Subject to appropriation, the department shall implement the plan by December 31, 2024.

SECTION 3. Section 1 shall take effect January 1, 2027.

SECTION 4. Section 4 of chapter 21Q in section 1 of this act is hereby repealed.

SECTION 5. Section 4 shall take effect January 1, 2028.