Lifestyle
California’s Anti-Straw Law Threatens Jail Time for Servers that Voluntarily Give out Straws to Patrons
Democratic Assemblyman Ian Calderon said he was only thinking of the environment when he proposed a bill (AB1884) that would make plastic straws, an item that is quoted “ The Most Wasted Product in America”, illegal for servers to give out in sit-down restaurants- but he may have proceeded the most dramatic way possible.
With the current bill, if a waiter at a sit-down restaurant provides patrons plastic straws without asking them, they risk misdemeanor penalties including jail time and/or fines up to $1,000.
Calderon said over twitter that it was not his intention to make it a crime for servers, but to raise awareness about the effects of plastic straws on the environment. “I didn’t actually ask for penalties,” Calderon said. “They were more or less prescribed to my bill by the code section.”
They are currently amending the bill: “Nobody is going to jail, nobody is going to be getting a $1,000 fine,” said Calderon,
The bill does not affect fast-food restaurants or grocery stores.
Opinion:
If this is such a travesty, why aren’t straws made out of another material?
Why are we going after the servers and not the restaurant? Keep in mind; this cuts down on restaurant costs.
How clean are restaurant cups in evaluation of not using straws to drink out of them?
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