BILL NUMBER: S1239F Revised 03/23/26
SPONSOR: KAVANAGH
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to enacting
the "food safety and chemical disclosure act"
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: To prohibit the use of certain harm-
ful substances as food additives in the manufacture and commercial
distribution of food products and require companies to disclose to New
York regulators ingredients they designate in-house as "generally recog-
nized as safe" and decline to disclose to the federal FDA.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one of the bill sets forth its title as the "Food Safety and
Chemical Disclosure Act."
Section two of the bill amends section 199-a of the agriculture and
markets law to add a new subdivision 5 to prohibit the food additives
FD&C Red 3, potassium bromate, and propylparaben; to provide an
exemption for certain retailers and relief organizations for three
years, or until the expiration date, best-by date, or sell-by date, for
food or food products they acquire before this bill's effective date;
and to provide that in any action by the commissioner to enforce compli-
ance, FDA recognition of a substance shall not be a defense.
Section three of the bill amends section 198 of the agriculture and
markets law by adding a new subdivision 7-a defining "generally recog-
nized as safe substance" or "GRAS substance" as any substance that is
not included under the definition of "food additive" because it is
generally recognized, either among experts qualified by scientific
training or by experience, as having been adequately shown to be safe
under the conditions of its intended use.
Section four of the bill amends subdivision 4 of section 199-a of the
agriculture and markets law to clarify that the section refers to the
"food and color additives" report submitted to the commissioner.
Section five of the bill amends the agriculture and markets law by
adding a new section 199-h, which makes it unlawful to sell or offer or
expose to sale or make any new use of any GRAS substance or combination
of GRAS substances unless a report has been submitted to the commission-
er and is included in a database; specifies what must be included in the
report, including: 1) certain characteristics of the data and informa-
tion being used as the basis for the manufacturer's conclusion that the
substance is GRAS, and 2) a statement about any information the manufac-
turer may be withholding as exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of
Information Law; exempts certain GRAS substances and exempts small busi-
nesses; provides that data establishing GRAS shall be publicly available
and cannot be based on trade secrets. The new section also provides that
retailers who hold a valid written contract with their supplier certify-
ing that products are compliant shall not be found in violation for
selling food containing an unreported GRAS substance. It further
provides that the section applies only to food intended for human
consumption, and that nothing in this section creates any new food
labeling requirements.
Section six of the bill amends section 199-b of the agriculture and
markets law by adding a new subdivision 5 to require the commissioner to
make the information set forth by new section 199-h available to the
public in a database available on its website; allows for redacting from
public reports information designated by the submitter as trade secrets;
requires the commissioner to update the database with any new informa-
tion related to the safety of a GRAS substance and empowers the commis-
sioner to refuse to list a GRAS substance if the submitter's report does
not contain the required information. The database must be searchable by
the public and must allow consumers to download and print displayed
information.
Section seven of the bill amends the second undesignated paragraph of
section 202-c of the agriculture and market law to include, under the
commissioner's existing enforcement powers, the new section 199-h and
any rule or order respecting a GRAS substance.
Section eight of the bill sets forth the effective date.
 
AMENDMENTS:
D-Print:
*Pushes out by an additional year the date after which the ban on the 3
food additives applies;
*clarifies that food service establishments, food relief organizations,
supermarkets, grocery stores, speciality food stores, farmers markets,
and any other vendors selling food at a retail directly to the public on
premises may sell items covered by this chapter until the expiration
date printed on the packing for up to 3 years from the effective date of
this act, provided that such food or product was acquired for sale with-
in the state by the vendor on or before the effective date of this para-
graph;
*increases the size of small business explicitly exempted from GRAS
reporting requirements from businesses with 10 or fewer to businesses
with 100 or fewer employees;
*provides that a GRAS report submitted pursuant to this chapter shall be
applicable to subsequent uses of a GRAS substance to be used under the
same conditions of intended use.
E-Print:
*Makes a technical change. F-Print:
*Adds clarity around retailer exemptions.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New Yorkers are eating food that may contain harmful chemicals without
their knowledge. This bill aims to address this problem in two ways.
First, it bans three specific ingredients that science has shown to be
dangerous and that have been banned in other jurisdictions. Second, it
closes a loophole that allows food companies to add new chemical ingre-
dients to food without public disclosure of the presence of the ingredi-
ents or the science behind the manufacturer's in-house determination
that they are safe.
The three ingredients this bill bans have been known to cause serious
health issues, in some cases for decades. The FDA determined 30 years
ago that red dye 3 causes cancer in animals, but only recently announced
a ban that will not take effect until 2027. Potassium bromate, which is
used to bleach flour, was linked to cancer by the World Health Organiza-
tion in 1992. The preservative propylparaben has been tied to hormone
disruption. The European Union has already banned all three, and Cali-
fornia banned them in 2023.
The presence of these additives in our food supply is related to a
broader problem, the loophole in federal law that allows food companies
to secretly add new chemicals to food. Under current federal law, food
manufacturers may decide in-house that a new ingredient is "generally
recognized as safe" ("GRAS"), without receiving approval from the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in advance ("pre-market approval")
and without even disclosing its inclusion in food to regulators or
consumers, or publicly presenting any evidence that it is safe.
Waiting for the federal government to address this issue is not a
reasonable option. Congress and the federal executive branch have failed
to take effective action for decades. The FDA has faced years of under-
funding and internal disorganization, and that was before mass staff
layoffs that occurred in 2025. While federal officials have recently
expressed interest in closing the GRAS loophole, that process could take
years to complete, if it happens at all, and faces stiff opposition from
the food industry that has long succeeded in blocking federal legis-
lation and regulatory accountability.
This bill, on the other hand, takes concrete action. It will require
food makers to disclose to the Department of Agriculture and Markets any
food ingredient they designate in-house as GRAS and decline to disclose
to the FDA, and the evidence they have that those ingredients are safe.
This information would be published in a searchable database accessible
to the public, policymakers, independent scientists, and food safety
experts. New Yorkers would be able to make more informed decisions for
themselves and their families.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024: 56055 (Kavanagh/Kelles) - referred to Agriculture S8615
(Kavanagh/Kelles) - referred to Agriculture
2025: S1239C (Kavanagh/Kelles) - Passed Senate, third reading in Assem-
bly
2026: S1239E (Kavanagh/Kelles) - Passed Senate, recalled, print no.
S1239F
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a law;
provided, however, that paragraph (c) of subdivision 5 of section 199-a
of the agriculture and markets law as added by section two of this act
shall take effect immediately. Effective immediately, the addition,
amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the
implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be
made and completed by the commissioner of agriculture and markers on or
before such effective date.

Statutes affected:
S1239: 199-a agriculture and markets law, 198 agriculture and markets law, 199-a(4) agriculture and markets law, 199-b agriculture and markets law
S1239A: 199-a agriculture and markets law, 198 agriculture and markets law, 199-a(4) agriculture and markets law, 199-b agriculture and markets law
S1239B: 199-a agriculture and markets law, 198 agriculture and markets law, 199-a(4) agriculture and markets law, 199-b agriculture and markets law
S1239C: 199-a agriculture and markets law, 198 agriculture and markets law, 199-a(4) agriculture and markets law, 199-b agriculture and markets law
S1239D: 199-a agriculture and markets law, 198 agriculture and markets law, 199-a(4) agriculture and markets law, 199-b agriculture and markets law
S1239E: 199-a agriculture and markets law, 198 agriculture and markets law, 199-a(4) agriculture and markets law, 199-b agriculture and markets law
S1239F: 199-a agriculture and markets law, 198 agriculture and markets law, 199-a(4) agriculture and markets law, 199-b agriculture and markets law