In a victory for retailers, the Florida Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to take up an appeal in a battle about the city of Coral Gables’ attempt to ban the use of Styrofoam food containers.
The decision effectively let stand a ruling last year by the 3rd District Court of Appeal that upheld the constitutionality of state laws that blocked a 2016 Coral Gables ordinance on polystyrene, commonly known as Styrofoam.
As is common, the Supreme Court did not explain its reasons for declining to hear the case, but the decision was unanimous.
Coral Gables approved an ordinance to ban Styrofoam in February 2016, and the Florida Retail Federation and Super Progreso, Inc., later filed a lawsuit challenging the ordinance’s legality. The Attorney General’s Office backed the retailers in the case, including filing a brief in November at the Supreme Court.
The case focused heavily on a wide-ranging Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services bill that lawmakers passed in March 2016. The bill barred local governments from regulating food-related polystyrene containers and made that prohibition retroactive to any local ordinances passed after Jan. 1, 2016.
Coral Gables was the only city affected by the Legislature’s decision to make the law retroactive to Jan. 1, 2016, spurring arguments that it was unfairly singled out. The city’s attorneys also argued that the Legislature improperly delegated regulation of polystyrene to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and created a “regulatory vacuum.”
“The city, for example, has more than 100 miles of waterway; its need to regulate the sale and use of environmentally harmful materials like polystyrene is immediate, and likely more so than that of other Florida municipalities,” the city said in a brief filed at the Supreme Court. “Despite home rule, its hands are now tied, and there is nothing to indicate that the department will take action on polystyrene. Were the Legislature to similarly preempt all regulation of a more imminently dangerous product — for example, toxic chemicals or weapons — the consequences for local governments would be all the more severe.”
But in the November brief, lawyers in Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office said the case “breaks no new ground regarding the nature of the Legislature’s power to preempt local ordinances” and, as a result, the Supreme Court should not take it up.
“The (3rd District Court of Appeal) decision simply restated the well-established legal principle that the Florida Legislature can expressly preempt a subject matter for state regulation if it so chooses,” attorneys for the Florida Retail Federation and Super Progreso, Inc., wrote in a separate brief in November. “The Legislature did so in the three clear and unambiguous statutes at issue.”
State attempts to preempt local regulations have been a high-profile issue in Tallahassee in recent years, including during the current legislative session.
The Senate, for example, passed a bill (SB 172) last month that would prevent local governments from regulating over-the-counter drugs and cosmetics. The proposal, which is pending in the House, stems from a decision by Key West to ban certain types of sunscreen because of concerns they could harm coral reefs. Supporters of the bill have pointed to a need to make sunscreen available to prevent skin cancer.
–Jim Saunders, News Service of Florida
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Dave says
Please get rid of styrofoam ,also plastic, they should charge people per plastic bag at the store if you want a bag, People should bring their own baga to the store.
Also no more plastic straws!!
Keep Flagler Beautiful says
This is disgusting. Where do they think all the Styrofoam goes after it’s discarded? If the justices had a landfill in their own neighborhoods — and you can bet they don’t — they would come to a very different conclusion. The only way to fight this is to flatly refuse to patronize any business that serves food or drink in Styrofoam, including take-out packaging.
Mary Fusco says
Keep America Beautiful, since a huge percentage of Americans live on takeout and fast food that might be a little problem. Funny, we never had these problems years ago when people cooked and ate at home. Personally, I cook every night. Couldn’t possibly afford take out. However, I couldn’t tell you the number of styrofoam cups and packaging plus napkins and straws that I have picked off of my lawn by the lazy aholes throwing them out of their car windows as they pass by.
Name (required) says
What a sanctimonious response. Ya, there’s litter in “certain neighborhoods.” Thanks for doing your neighborhood the favor!! Make America beautiful again! Lol
Gary R says
Pooping in Streets is Fine But No Paper Cups or Straws Allowed in San Francisco?
Dave says
Actually peeing in public or pooping can land some very serious charges in San Francisco including landing you on the sexual predators list so think before you speak.
Tell me whats the point of using a straw? Just ise your lips like you do at home.
People are just too lazy.
C.K. says
Agreed….straws are for suckers.
Keep Flagler Beautiful says
What does San Francisco have to do with it? Irrelevant comment. This is a Florida case, and as far as I know, it isn’t legal to poop in the streets of Coral Gables.
oldtimer says
What about all the plastic water bottles? God forbid we drink tap water
Richard says
Styrofoam should be permanently banned from the entire world. It takes thousands of years to decompose in landfills, the longest of ALL of the stuff that goes into our landfills. The only true way to recycle Styrofoam is to BURN it. In regards to plastic straws, sorry people but I will never touch my lips to any beverage container cleaned by restaurant staff. Therefore I will continue to use plastic straws at ALL restaurants to eliminate catching germs unnecessarily. Plastic bags and plastic straws are both recyclable into many other useful products providing that people are considerate and conscientious to place these into recycling containers. BUT unfortunately most Americans are way TOO lazy to do just that. Just look at all of the trash you see along the roadways in addition to the number of cigarette butts, absolutely disgusting! You can’t change the spots of a leopard, once a litterer always a litterer. Those roadside Do Not Litter signs are absolutely worthless in my opinion. Has ANYONE actually been stopped and fined $1000 for littering?
Keep Flagler Beautiful says
Richard, just a suggestion — you might want to buy some stainless steel or glass straws, which come in a sort of travel pack that you can keep in your glove box. I bought mine through Amazon, and both types are very good quality. The colored glass ones are made from the very same glass as Pyrex, so they’re sturdy. They come in a straight or “bent” form. Usually you can just rinse them out with plain water, but many come with a little brush that can be used if, say, a piece of fruit from a smoothie remains. This may seem like a small thing, but if everyone did it, what a difference it would make. So many marine animals wouldn’t have to die an agonizing death from consuming plastic.
Been there done that says
I went to Thailand [ Puket and Kamala ] in 2010 and ate a lot of street food, they used plastic baggies for food to go. I thought it was very interesting. Soups were served in a cardboard type box, similar to Chinese take out. I don’t believe I ever saw Styrofoam being used for food to go. I don’t know why we can’t do this here in the USA. I find it disgusting that so many places send your food home in Styrofoam containers, especially fried foods, they melt the containers !! Yummy!
We are a Nation of lazy people, garbage along the roads, excessive use of water, fertilizing our yards so we can have pretty yards, throwing so much food away, while others are starving, so many things that can be changed to make our earth healthy again , but why bother ?
I pray for my grandchildren that they have something to look forward too, other then a desert, scattered with litter !