Corpus Christi Single-Use Items: Plastic Straw Rules Rules (2026)

Plastic-straw on-request rules and outright bans are common in coastal U.S. cities, but Corpus Christi has not adopted one. Texas Health and Safety Code §361.0961, as construed in Laredo Merchants, casts doubt on a city's power to prohibit or restrict single-use food-service items based on solid-waste concerns. Local restaurants therefore distribute plastic straws by default, often alongside paper alternatives offered to customers who ask. Disability-rights advocates also note that plastic straws remain important for some people with mobility impairments, which has shaped how cities outside Texas designed exemptions in their own ordinances.