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CC 09-06-2022 Item No. 16 Written CommunicationsCC 09-06-2022 Written Communications Item No. 16 Single-Use Plastic Foodware From:Katie Hansen To:City Council Subject:Agenda Item #16: CRA Comment Letter Date:Friday, September 2, 2022 2:05:37 PM Attachments:image001.png Cupertino Proposed Restaurant Mandates Final.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Greetings Mayor and Councilmembers, On behalf of the California Restaurant Association, I would like to respectfully submit a comment letter regarding Item 16 on the September 9, 2022 City Council meeting agenda. Please feel free to let me know if you have any questions. Thank you, Katie Hansen Katie Hansen Senior Legislative Director California Restaurant Association 621 Capitol Mall, Suite 2000 Sacramento, CA 95814 T: 800.765.4842/ 916.431.2773 F: 916.447.6182 E: khansen@calrest.org www.calrest.org We’re here for you. Visit our website for all you need to know about COVID-19. While all information released by the California Restaurant Association (CRA) is intended to provide accurate information on the subject covered, the CRA does not provide legal advice and any information provided by the CRA shall not constitute legal advice. You are encouraged to consult your attorney, accountant, or other appropriate professional, as needed. Confidentiality note: This electronic message transmission contains information from the California Restaurant Association which may be confidential or privileged. The information is intended to be for the use of the individual or entity named above. If you are not the intended recipient, be aware that any disclosure, copying, distribution or use of the contents of this information is prohibited. If you have received this electronic transmission in error, please immediately notify us by telephone at 800.765.4842. September 2, 2022 Mayor Paul and Cupertino City Councilmembers Cupertino City Hall 10300 Torre Avenue Cupertino, CA 95014 RE: Agenda Item #16: Ordinance regulating single use plastic food ware and carryout bags. Dear Mayor Paul, Vice-Mayor Chao, and Councilmembers, The California Restaurant Association provided detailed comment on the proposed ordinance in April regarding the functional impacts the proposal would have upon restaurants. While we appreciate the spirit in which you are considering policies to reduce single-use food service waste, we do have remaining concerns regarding the impacts of the proposed ordinance on the everyday operation of our member restaurants. Alignment with AB 1276, Napkins and Fines The California Restaurant Association (CRA) worked with Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo to create AB 1276, a statewide model to ensure single use accessories are not automatically distributed to guests. The AB 1276 model creates an “opt in” requirement for guests to receive single-use food accessories from restaurants or third-party delivery platforms. Compliance options include self-service receptacles, direct guest request or upon offer by the restaurant in drive thru settings only. The new law will go a long way in increasing awareness of unnecessary single use product distribution, while also recognizing a one-size-fits-all approach does not work for guests or varying restaurant models. For instance, the law allows for sensible exceptions to the “upon request” model for restaurants to proactively give a guest a napkin with their food in a drive thru setting. Sensible, and important for health and safety reasons. We recommend aligning the proposal before you with AB 1276, to allow restaurants to include napkins with drive thru orders to ensure ease in compliance. The proposed ordinance has administrative citation fines that differ from AB 1276. Is it appropriate to issue a fine of $100 to $500 to a restaurant for handing out a napkin as part of a drive thru order without first offering it to the guest? We recommend revising the proposal to align it with the enforcement provisions of AB 1276 which require a notice of violation for the first and second violation followed by a fine of $25 for each day in violation afterwards, not to exceed $300 annually. We would also respectfully ask that you not go beyond this law at this time. Aligning with AB 1276 would move the spirit of our collective concern about unnecessary use of single-use products forward in a major way and be a very substantive next step for the City. New Mandates for On-Site Dining We are strongly opposed to any potential ban on disposable food ware for all on -site dining. It is important to note that the legislature rejected provisions of AB 1276 that would have required these same neighborhood restaurants to only use reusable dishware for onsite dining in a clear recognition of the challenges that would bring to these restaurants. We believe this ordinance could result in unintended environmental impacts. Presumably, with increased use of reusable food service ware we would then see an increase in other utility usage and associated costs. Since reusable food service ware must be cleaned and sanitized, this results in increased water and energy usage. Restaurants typically do not own their commercial space- and therefore are extremely limited in their ability to change their physical “footprint.” For those smaller restaurants who currently don’t possess dishwashing machines or are unable to add additional machines, or can’t physically accommodate them due to space limitations, this dramatic business operation change will force restaurants to hire additional labor to meet the increased workload (of additional dishwashing) resulting from this mandate. This not only adds significant new labor costs to struggling restaurants but comes at a time when all industries- and restaurants in particular- continue to face a general labor shortage. It is important to note, again, that square footage of established buildings is extremely limited and unchangeable, as most restaurants are located on properties they do not own and therefore are limited in expanding or altering their physical “footprint”. Many restaurants will be forced to buy and install dishwashing appliances in th eir kitchen to accommodate the dine-in reusable requirements, which will be an extremely expensive task and a near impossible one for many due to physical space constraints. Restaurant models of all types will also have to grapple with the storage of these dishware items as well, in physical commercial spaces that did not contemplate this new mandate. Proposing a September 6, 2023, enforcement date for this proposed Ordinance is well appreciated for the other provisions of the Ordinance, however this does n ot change the issues raised above as it relates to forcing restaurants to alter their service models so significantly by requiring all reusable food service ware for onsite dining. We appreciate the inclusion of an exemption or time extension under 9.15.120 in the proposed ordinance, however an exemption that is only good for up to 6 months is not enough to resolve the inability for some restaurants to comply with this section of the proposed ordinance. Some of these issues like not being able to control your physical footprint cannot be addressed with time alone. Limiting Supply Supply chain issues are impacting restaurants too, especially as it relates to available packaging products. Limiting the food service packaging product options neighborhood restaurants can use to safely serve their guests at this time will only exacerbate these challenges. We object to product bans on certain recyclable and compostable products as the various materials of packaging play different roles in the service of food to our guests. In many instances switching to alternative take -out containers that are less structurally effective will compromise the quality of the food and service. Soups and other hot meals will cause alternative containers to breakdown, become soggy and become a potential safety hazard for our guests. The proposed product bans for restaurants will not only limit available options for take-out containers but will add unnecessary pressure to those restaurants that have been challenged with supply issues as the pandemic has greatly impacted the supply chain of all goods. The cost of goods, including food service ware has increased, while the supply has decreased. Alternative packaging materials often can be significantly more expensive. In an industry where the economic margins are razor thin- and one that is trying its best to crawl out from under the pandemic closures, any additional operational costs just pile on to the ongoing financial strain restaurants continue to feel as a result of state and local decisions made during the pandemic. Carry-Out Bags for Restaurants While we appreciate exempting restaurants from the requirement to charge our customers 10 cents for a paper carryout bag, the ordinance requires restaurants to phase out the use of single use plastic carry out bags by September 6, 2023. State law- and the vast majority of local jurisdictions- currently allow restaurants to use plastic bags. We share the collective concern about reducing the use of plastics- and do so when we can. Restaurants should have the freedom of choice to determine what type of bag works best to maintain the integrity of their product. Paper bags are not always the most practical choice for restaurants. ▪ Plastic bags are superior to paper bags in protecting against accidental spills and leaks during transport, whereas the content would just seep through a paper bag. Customers become disgruntled when food from the bag leaks onto their car, carpet, clothes, etc. ▪ In addition, some types of containers don’t fit as well in paper bags. Whereas plastic bags conform to the size of the container, paper bags do not. The bottom of paper bags is generally rectangular-shaped which doesn’t work when you have a standard, large square container. ▪ Restaurants will tightly pack up food in a plastic bag and use the handles to tie the bag to prevent the food from moving around and spilling. You can’t do this with a paper bag. We respectfully request that restaurants have the ability to use single-use plastic carry out bags. We believe we can be productive in helping shape a workable policy that increases environmental awareness of our guests and continues to offer them a variety of ways to acquire the products they may need – or want – to enjoy their dining experience, both in and out of the restaurant. Thank you for your consideration, Matt Sutton Senior Vice President, Government Affairs + Public Policy California Restaurant Association