A Bag Bill for Baltimore?

Fee on plastic bags distributed in Baltimore wins committee approval

Customers who shop in Baltimore would have to pay 5 cents for each plastic bag at supermarkets and other merchants under legislation that's making its way through the City Council.

A key council committee voted Wednesday to send the measure to the full council, where it is expected to receive a vote Monday.

A majority of City Council members support the bill. And Councilman James B. Kraft, the bill's sponsor, who has spent a decade pushing for the measure as way to reduce litter, said he is confident that the fee will pass.

But several council members raised concerns about a new fee after Tuesday's election, in which Republican Larry Hogan won the gubernatorial race. Hogan had put a spotlight on what he characterized as high taxes and government-imposed fees.

According to this article, Maryland ranks 41st out of 50 (50 being the highest)  for total state taxes with number 50 being New York. There's still room to grow! Surprisingly enough, the state of Maryland rejected a bag tax back in 2013.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, who previously said she would sign legislation imposing plastic bag fees, softened her position Wednesday. She said her support depends on how the final bill is crafted.

"I will always have concerns about imposing more taxes and fees," the mayor said, when asked about whether she would support the bill. "I had to do a significant amount of that in order to climb out of the Great Recession, so I'm always cautious about that. But until I see the latest iteration, I can't say."
. . .
Holton said she could be persuaded to support the measure by using the revenue it generates to offset other expenses city taxpayers shoulder, including projects aimed at cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay.

Under Kraft's bill, retailers would keep a penny and a half for each plastic bag to offset their costs. The rest — an estimated $1.5 million in the first year — would go to city coffers.

Kraft said he wants the money raised to clean up the harbor and city parks, though he said the measure isn't intended to be a money maker but to discourage the use of plastic bags.

"My goal is that we don't make any money out of this because if people don't use the bags, we won't collect the fees," he said. "It's a behavior change."

Plastic bags used to carry fresh produce and meat, dairy, prescriptions and prepared foods would be exempt. Retailers that fail to charge for the plastic bags would face a fine, as well as interest and penalties for late payments.

We use reusable grocery bags, well mostly, when their in the right car when we find ourselves at the store. However, a reusable bag has to be reused many times to be an improvement from an energy and cost point of view. Most of them get lost somehow before that point, so the actual net benefit of an outright bag ban is probably negative. They also lead to more shoplifting and greater rates of gastrointestinal disease, but if it makes you feel better about the environment, enjoy the glow (and diarrhea).

Now a tax. That's a different story. That's a pure money maker for the city, and a serious hassle and cost for all the shops and shoppers in Baltimore. But I don't care. I don't shop in Baltimore.

You do know that plastic bags can be recycled into fuel, don't you?