08/29/2023 – 7:03 pm
The Legislative Assembly of the State of São Paulo (Alesp) approved a bill on the 8th that obliges bars, restaurants, snack bars, bakeries and similar establishments to offer free and unrestricted drinking water to customers. The text was forwarded last Monday, the 22nd, to Governor Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), who may or may not sanction the text.
“In fact, the offer of water is common in establishments. What is unusual is the provision of filtered drinking water. Filtering is important to retain possible particles such as sand, clay, rust, dust and other sediments, remove excess chlorine and carry out biological control. This contributes to the prevention of diseases”, justified Deputy Átila Jacomussi (Solidariedade), author of PL 433/2023.
The bill also obliges establishments to post posters or visible notices on the menu about the availability of free water. Those who do not follow the rule are subject to administrative sanctions provided for in the Consumer Protection Code.
“It is not right for people to feel embarrassed to ask for […] a glass of filtered drinking water”, says the text of the PL. “What is intended is to ensure that São Paulo consumers also have access to free filtered drinking water at will, putting an end to any discussion about the quality of the water that can be offered free of charge.”
For lawyer Percival Maricato, institutional director of the São Paulo branch of the Brazilian Association of Bars and Restaurants (AbraselSP), the obligation of an establishment to offer drinking and filtered water to customers is unconstitutional, illegal and immoral. “It is an abusive intervention of the State in the private initiative”, said the Estadão.
According to Maricato, the purchase and sale of bottled water by bars and restaurants is one of the factors considered to maintain the “balance of expenses” and the law could reduce the profit of these establishments. “Stop billing with bottled or mineral water. Perhaps the service ends up being more expensive than the water”, says the lawyer, referring to the work of filtering the water, serving it and then removing the glass from the table.
“Under the famous premise that there is no such thing as a free lunch, it is clear that the establishment will seek to balance its revenue to be able to pay employees and even the tax authorities of colleagues in the Assembly”, says Maricato. According to him, the sector is still suffering from the effects of the pandemic and many of the entrepreneurs “still owe the banks”.
Still in 2021, bars and restaurants in the capital of São Paulo associated with the National Tourism Confederation (CNTur) asked the Justice to repeal a municipal law approved by the then mayor Bruno Covas (PSDB) which basically required the same supply of drinking water to customers. The fine for those who do not comply with the norm could reach up to R$ 8 thousand, according to the text.
In June last year, a decision by judge James Siano, of the São Paulo Court of Justice (TJ-SP), concluded that the obligation to offer free drinking water to customers is an interference by the State in the private sector. The City Hall appealed the decision and the case ended up in the Federal Supreme Court, where it still has no forecast of being judged.
According to Maricato, Abrasel is not against offering the famous “house water”, but opposes that this is a legal obligation. “Maybe because of the reduction of plastic, [o PL] it would be a strong argument. But this doesn’t even seem to have been considered in the legislation, because we even have a certain concern for the environment.”
Abrasel has no estimate of how much damage bars and restaurants would suffer if they offered free drinking water, nor how much is the sector’s revenue from the sale of mineral or bottled water.
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