The California Plastic Bag Ban: Where Do We Go From Here?

Abstract

On September 30, 2014, the Governor of California signed the nation’s first statewide ban on single-use bags, including plastic bags. Senate Bill (SB) 270, as of July 1, 2015, will prohibit stores that exceed a designated amount of revenue or retail floor space from providing free single-use bags to customers at the point of sale. The bill also sets the minimum price for reusable bags at ten cents ($.10) with certain limitations and exceptions. The debate over SB 270 was one of the biggest battles in California’s most recent legislative session. While a lot of people in and out of California were cheering for the passage of the bill, others, including plastic bag manufactures, environment activists and even legislators from both major political parties expressed their concerns about the possible negative effects of the ban. Both the goal of the legislation and the debate over SB 270 are really focusing on plastic bags even though SB 270 regulates “single-use” bags. The debate will continue across the country with pending legislations on plastic bag restrictions in other states and cities. This comment mainly discusses the possible environmental effects and economic effects of the plastic bag restrictions found in SB 270, and reveals why such a bag ban is a right move to reduce plastic waste without substantial side-effects.