NJCCC and NJFC Applaud Legislation to Fight Litter

July 23, 2025 – In what will be another tremendous tool to fight litter in New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy has signed landmark legislation that will fuel a permanent annual appropriation of $500,000 to the Clean Communities Program Fund for our widely-successful reusable bag program.

On behalf of the NJ Food Council, NJCCC, and Clean Communities Coordinators statewide, we applaud the signing of this bill and the steadfast commitment of our Governor and State Legislature to fight single-use bag litter. This law continues to make a tremendous difference in each and every community.

The bill, S.3711, will fund the ongoing management of a statewide program that distributes gently-used reusable bags to food banks, pantries, and other nonprofit groups across the state. The bill was signed into law yesterday, July 22, and goes into effect immediately.

The NJCCC has been at the forefront of the single-use bag ban law, signed May 4, 2022. It has been tremendously impactful and effective, keeping billions of single-use bags out of New Jersey’s wastestream every year. The NJCCC has been focused on ensuring the success of this law, a prototype for other state and local governments to emulate, and has worked closely with the business community to ensure that all New Jerseyans have access to clean reusable bags.

S.3711 builds upon the original legislation, which provided $500,000 per year for three years for the Clean Communities program, funding public education through the LitterFreeNJ program and for our reusable bag distribution program that keeps reusable bags out of landfills and environmentally-sensitive areas.

NJCCC, working with the New Jersey Food Council, of which Linda Doherty is President & CEO, created the pilot distribution program two years ago, encouraging shoppers to donate their gently used reusable bags to be collected, sanitized and donated to local food pantries, senior centers and other nonprofits. This statewide program has grown so much, thanks to our many public, private and non-profit partnerships.

With this ongoing funding, paid through a litter tax on certain businesses, we can now ensure a steady stream of donated bags to those in need for years to come. Learn more about the program, or where you can donate your unwanted reusable bags, here.