California, always seeking to be a trendsetter on environmental policy, is weighing a proposal to charge 25 cents for every paper or plastic bag distributed at grocery stores, pharmacies and convenience stores. The money raised would go into a state fund used to clean up trash and prevent litter related to what the bill calls “single-use” bags.
The bill’s sponsor, Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, says 25 cents a bag is high enough to have a real impact on consumer behavior. The fee would be waived for some low-income Californians.
The idea, of course, is to encourage people to bring their own reusable bags to the supermarket. Brownley argues that a similar program in Ireland has been a success, reducing plastic bag litter by more than 90 percent.
The bill’s other aim is to help the state offset the $25 million a year it spends to clean up plastic bag waste. Municipalities spend $300 million, Brownley says.
Chuck DeVore, a Republican assemblyman from Orange County, said the idea is “just one of a sorry series of tax increases that the Democrats are trying to foist on the working people of California.”
DeVore said the bag charge would add $2 to $3 to the bill every time a family goes to the store. And if that family brings along reusable bags, that can be a health hazard.
“If you buy some chicken or some meat, unless you figure a way to wash those bags every time, you will have salmonella in those natural fibers,” DeVore said.
Currently, retailers in California are required to set up in-store recycling programs for used bags. Brownley, however, says preliminary results show there has only been a negligible increase in bag recycling since that law went into effect.
But how realistic is it to push through a bill during a recession that will effectively make consumers pay more at the grocery store? Would such a law prompt you to break out those reusable bags once and for all?
DeVore says he expects the bill to pass the Assembly and land on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s desk.
(Additional reporting by Bernie Woodall; photo by Brendan McDermid, Reuters)
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Twenty five cents for a paper or plastic bag is nothing! Find something more important to complain about - like all the plastic that is littering our shores and oceans, killing fish and whales. If you don’t want to pay, simply bring your own bag - that’s what this is about anyway - to help us all be more responsible.
- Posted by Lynda SayreWhy would you waive the fee for “some” low income Californians.What about low income visitors?
- Posted by edo[...] California, always seeking to be a trendsetter on environmental policy, is weighing a proposal to charge 25 cents for every paper or plastic bag distributed at grocery stores, pharmacies and convenience stores. The money raised would go into a state … Go to Source [...]
- Posted by Paying On Time - Credit Cards » Paper or plastic? Oh, and 25 cents please! - Reuters BlogsPeople, this is not a “bag” problem. DeVore has a lot of credibility here. But let’s face it, if we just control our habits this issue of a bag tax would be removed. We can’t begin to sit here and blame a bag for the worlds problem. Litter is a personal issue not a production issue.
Drive anywhere, you’ll see cups, cigarettes, cans, glass etc. Are we truly going to begin “taxing” and/or “banning” all these types of products, no–get real.
This is another sorry attempt to help scratch away at a debt that our elected officials caused.
Don’t let them fool you.
- Posted by Earth Sense