A package of food safety and transparency bills awaiting action by Gov. Kathy Hochul is among the hundreds of measures passed by the Legislature this year now sitting in limbo.
Lawmakers passed more than 750 bills last session, and it often takes months for the governor to consider them all. As of this week, 445 remained pending — more than half, but roughly the same place she was at this time last year.
It is a cumbersome process, said Blair Horner with the New York Public Interest Research Group. There also are political considerations.
“Often, controversial issues that the governor does not want to have addressed (wait) until the holidays,” Horner said, “when maybe no one's paying attention. ”
This being an election year adds to the intrigue.
The long runway between bill passage and action gives all sides of an issue more time to plead their cases, and the governor more time to deliberate before deciding whether to sign the legislation into law, veto it or request amendments. It's not uncommon, and the food bills are no exception.
One, the Food Safety and Disclosure Act, bans food additives linked in Europe to cancer and other health problems. It also requires makers of packaged foods to disclose more information about certain ingredients.
A coalition of business groups has sent a letter to Hochul, urging her to veto the bill.
But the business groups, including the Rochester Chamber of Commerce, said the bill will drive up costs for businesses and customers. Such regulations should come from the federal government, they argued.
“We're trying to … give her and her team the understanding about why this is unnecessary and probably the wrong thing to do right now for New Yorkers,” said Dan Cosgrove, executive director of the industry-backed Food Ingredient Safety Coalition.
Dan Zambito runs The Boot Room Pub in Rochester. He’s concerned about the potential ban on potassium bromide, an additive that is often used in pizza and bagels.
“Our margins are super thin, and you know, making them even thinner would be tough,” Zambito said. “And I really don't want to have to, you know, push those extra costs onto my customers.”
But advocates said many restaurants have already moved away from potassium bromide. They also said concerns about costs and added burdens for businesses and state agencies were overblown.
“They're pouring a ton of money into fighting this bill. We passed it anyways, and they're going to do the same with Gov. Hochul,” said Meghan Enslow, a policy associate with the Center for Science in the Public Interest, during a June rally. “But we have a coalition of people across New York who are fighting to get this bill passed.”
Hochul has not yet received the bill for consideration. Bills are received in batches, and the governor has until the end of the year to act.
“It enables the governor's office to do due diligence and really look into the issues and not be overwhelmed by the number of bills,” said Dan Camrata, a policy analyst with Reinvent Albany. “At the same time, it prevents the Legislature really from doing any overrides of a veto unless they have a special session, which they do very infrequently.”
Changing the process would probably require a change in how the Llegislature operates, analysts said.
“One where fewer bills would end up being introduced, fewer bills would pass, and the governor would have fewer bills to deal with in the second half of the year,” Horner said.
Camrata and Horner said the public should pay attention to legislation that’s being considered by the governor, particularly in December, and reach out to lawmakers and the governor’s office if they have concerns.
