Prince George’s County council considers abandoned shopping carts bill

HYATTSVILLE, Md. ( DC News Now ) — Prince George’s County councilmembers are calling it a rolling mess.

There are shopping carts spilling into neighborhoods and families said they are fed up with the stray carts being abandoned near their homes.

That includes concerned resident Rachiel Durant.

“I think there are folks trying to get home who don’t have a car and so they walk home with the actual carts and so they are pushing the carts with their groceries and at some point, the carts’ wheels lock and they leave them wherever they are,” Durant said.

Councilmember Wanika Fisher said this has been a problem for many years and that is why she wants to crack down on it. Fisher proposed a grocery cart bill to hold retail stores responsible for carts that leave their properties.

“One of the reasons I ran for council was quality of life, and in my district, around the county, when shopping carts are taken off the business properties and left in the community, trash can end up in them and it can become a health hazard,” Fisher said.

If the bill becomes law Fisher said she wants stores to label their carts and add serial numbers to help retailers find the missing carts. If businesses do not comply, they can face fines.

“If your cart is found in the community, they can fined $200 for every infraction and so we will be working out some of those fines and that’s why the carts need to be labeled,” Fisher said.

The proposed bill will be voted on Thursday during committee and if passed, the council will vote again on the matter next week.

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