Bill Text: NY S04249 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended


Bill Title: Relates to prohibited locations for new retail electronic cigarette stores and tobacco businesses.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-14 - REPORTED AND COMMITTED TO RULES [S04249 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S04249-Amended.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         4249--A

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      March 5, 2019
                                       ___________

        Introduced by Sens. MARTINEZ, GOUNARDES, KRUEGER, PARKER, THOMAS -- read
          twice  and  ordered  printed,  and when printed to be committed to the
          Committee on Health -- committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  public  health  law,  in relation to prohibited
          locations for retail electronic cigarette  stores  and  tobacco  busi-
          nesses

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

     1    Section 1. Section 1399-aa of the public  health  law  is  amended  by
     2  adding a new subdivision 14 to read as follows:
     3    14.  "Retail  electronic cigarette store" means a retail store devoted
     4  primarily to the sale of electronic cigarettes, and in which the sale of
     5  other products is incidental. The sale of such other products  shall  be
     6  considered  incidental  if  such  sales  generate  less than twenty-five
     7  percent of the total annual gross sales.
     8    § 2. The public  health  law  is  amended  by  adding  a  new  section
     9  1399-mm-1 to read as follows:
    10    §  1399-mm-1.  Retail  electronic  cigarette  stores and tobacco busi-
    11  nesses; prohibited locations of new stores. 1. No new retail  electronic
    12  cigarette store and/or tobacco business shall be constructed or located:
    13    (a)  on  the  same  street  or avenue and within two hundred feet of a
    14  building occupied exclusively as a school, church,  synagogue  or  other
    15  place of worship;
    16    (b)  in  a  city  within  five  hundred feet of three or more existing
    17  retail electronic cigarette stores and/or tobacco businesses; or
    18    (c) in a town or village within a two square mile  area  of  three  or
    19  more  existing  retail  electronic cigarette stores and/or tobacco busi-
    20  nesses.
    21    2. The measurements in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of subdivision  one
    22  of this section are to be taken in straight lines from the center of the

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09776-10-9

        S. 4249--A                          2

     1  nearest  entrance of the premises sought to be licensed to the center of
     2  the nearest entrance of such school, church, synagogue or other place of
     3  worship or to the center of the nearest  entrance  of  each  new  retail
     4  electronic cigarette store and/or tobacco business.
     5    3.  Within the context of this section, the word "entrance" shall mean
     6  a door of a school, of a house of worship, or of a new retail electronic
     7  cigarette store and/or tobacco business, regularly used to give  ingress
     8  to  students of the school, to the general public attending the place of
     9  worship, and to patrons or guests of a new retail  electronic  cigarette
    10  store  and/or  tobacco  business, except that where a school or house of
    11  worship or new retail electronic cigarette store and/or tobacco business
    12  is set back from a public thoroughfare, the walkway or stairs leading to
    13  any such door shall be deemed an entrance; and the measurement shall  be
    14  taken to the center of the walkway or stairs at the point where it meets
    15  the  building  line or public thoroughfare. A door which has no exterior
    16  hardware, or which is used solely as an emergency or fire exit,  or  for
    17  maintenance  purposes,  or  which leads directly to a part of a building
    18  not regularly used by the general public or patrons, is  not  deemed  an
    19  "entrance".
    20    4.  Within the context of this section, a building occupied as a place
    21  of worship does not cease to be "exclusively" occupied  as  a  place  of
    22  worship  by incidental uses that are not of a nature to detract from the
    23  predominant character of the building as a place of worship,  such  uses
    24  which  include,  but  which  are  not limited to: the conduct of legally
    25  authorized games of bingo or other games of chance held as  a  means  of
    26  raising  funds  for  the  not-for-profit  religious  organization  which
    27  conducts services at the place of worship or  for  other  not-for-profit
    28  organizations  or  groups;  use of the building for fundraising perform-
    29  ances by or benefitting the not-for-profit religious organization  which
    30  conducts services at the place of worship or other not-for-profit organ-
    31  izations or groups; the use of the building by other religious organiza-
    32  tions or groups for religious services or other purposes; the conduct of
    33  social  activities  by or for the benefit of the congregants; the use of
    34  the building for meetings held  by  organizations  or  groups  providing
    35  bereavement  counseling  to  persons having suffered the loss of a loved
    36  one, or providing advice or support for conditions or  diseases  includ-
    37  ing,  but  not  limited to, alcoholism, drug addiction, cancer, cerebral
    38  palsy, Parkinson's disease, or  Alzheimer's  disease;  the  use  of  the
    39  building  for  blood drives, health screenings, health information meet-
    40  ings, yoga classes, exercise classes or  other  activities  intended  to
    41  promote  the  health of the congregants or other persons; and use of the
    42  building by non-congregant members of the community for  private  social
    43  functions. The building occupied as a place of worship does not cease to
    44  be "exclusively" occupied as a place of worship where the not-for-profit
    45  religious  organization  occupying  the  place  of  worship  accepts the
    46  payment of funds to defray costs related to another party's use  of  the
    47  building.
    48    5.  The  provisions  of  this section shall not apply to any currently
    49  existing retail electronic cigarette stores and/or tobacco businesses.
    50    § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
    51  it shall have become a law.
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