Despite protests from the Maryland Restaurant Association and local restaurant owners, the Montgomery County Council on Tuesday approved a bill that would require chain restaurants to post calorie counts on their menus and menu boards, according to a story on WJLA ABC 7 News.
The regulations will take effect in July 2010 and apply to restaurants with 20 or more facilities nationally and would only require calorie information.
At least three states and several communities, including New York City, have passed menu labeling regulations. A national menu labeling requirement featuring bipartisan language is part of the health-care reform package passed by the U.S. House earlier this month. The U.S. Senate is still crafting its version of the bill, but a bill proposed by the Senate health committee in May contained the bipartisan menu labeling regulations.
