SPRINGFIELD, ILL.—The Illinois State Senate has passed a bill (SB 2960) that would ban hotels from stocking miniature bottles of lotion, shampoo, and other toiletries. The Small Single-Use Plastic Bottle Act, yet to be passed by the Illinois State House, provides that, beginning July 1, 2025, hotels with 50 rooms or more and, beginning January 1, 2026, hotels with less than 50 rooms may not provide small single-use plastic bottles containing personal care products to either (i) a customer of the establishment who is staying in a sleeping room accommodation or any space within the sleeping room accommodation or (ii) a customer of the establishment who is using a bathroom shared by the public or guests. The bill establishes civil penalties.
Similar bans have passed in other states, including California, New York, and Washington State. California began to crack down on single-use toiletry bottles last year. New York’s ban went into effect January 1 for hotels with 50 rooms or more and will go into effect January 1, 2025, for hotels with less than 50 rooms. In Washington State, hotels with 50 rooms or more must phase out the bottles by January 1, 2027, and those with 50 rooms or less by January 1, 2028.
Glenn Hasek can be reached at greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.
