Travis County does not regulate plastic straws because TX HSC 361.0961 preempts local container restrictions; restaurants may voluntarily offer paper or upon-request straw service without local mandate.
Plastic drinking straws fall within the scope of items that Texas Health and Safety Code Section 361.0961 protects from local prohibition or restriction. Following the 2018 Laredo Merchants ruling, attempts to mandate straws-on-request or ban plastic straws at the county or city level face the same preemption barrier as bag and foam bans. Travis County has not adopted a straw rule. Restaurants in unincorporated areas remain free to choose any straw type or to default to upon-request service voluntarily, and TCHHS does not include straw-handling rules in routine inspections.
There is no local straw enforcement. Travis County does not cite or fine restaurants for offering plastic straws, and state preemption blocks adoption of a mandatory upon-request rule.
See how Travis County's plastic straw rules rules stack up against other locations.
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