California bills to ban plastic ‘reusable’ shopping bags move forward

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Plastic bags at stores across California could soon become a relic of the past after lawmakers passed two bills that would expand the state’s existing single-use bag ban to include the “recyclable” alternative now used by some retailers.

Assembly Bill 2236 and Senate Bill 1053 were introduced earlier this year by Asm. Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda), State Sens. Catherine Blakespear (D-Encinitas) and Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica).

AB 2236 was approved Wednesday night, while SB 1053 was passed on Thursday. Both were given final approval in a concurring vote on Friday and now head to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk.

Both bills target use of the thicker, plastic film alternative shopping bag, which was originally excluded from the voter-approved single-use shopping bag ban. It would also require paper bags to now be made out of 100% recycled material — up from the previous 40% requirement.

Advocates say the option to use these plastic film bags have become a loophole for retailers, contributing to a dramatic increase in plastic bag waste over the last decade despite efforts to rein in their use.

Should the ban be signed into law, Blakespear said in a statement that paper bags will effectively become the norm across the state at checkout — whether at the grocery store or at a retailer like Target.

“This easy change eliminates plastic bags from the point of sale and helps California significantly reduce the plastic waste that is contaminating our environment and waters,” the state senator continued.

California implemented its single-use plastic bag ban in 2016. It came two years after a bill creating it was signed into law due to a bid by plastic manufacturers to halt its enforcement by putting the ban before voters in a statewide referendum.

The original ban included an exception that would allow retailers to use the plastic bags with a slightly thicker film coating, allowing it to have more than 125 uses or carry 22 pounds over a distance of 175 feet.

At the time, these types of bags were considered “recyclable” or reusable, although that designation has since been walked back by state regulators.

Besides issues with whether the material itself could be processed as a recyclable, lawmakers have expressed concern about the ban’s exception for these bags, questioning whether consumers would not treat them any differently than other single-use plastic shopping bags.

That suspicion became reality in recent years: CalRecycle reported a roughly 47% increase in the number of merchandise and grocery bags ending up was waste over the last decade.

This grew to amounts considered an all-time high in 2021, when Californians generated 231,000 tons of plastic bag waste, according to a study by the California Public Interest Research Group.

Environmental groups and other proponents of AB 2236 and SB 1053 argue the removal of this exception will help bring the state closer to its climate goals by minimizing the amount of plastic waste that ends up in landfills.

This waste, advocates say, has sweeping impacts on the environment, contributing to the presence of toxic microplastics in the ocean and release of greenhouse gases from landfills.

The bills’ opponents, which include plastics manufacturers and recyclers, argue that the bill could have unintended consequences, including the elimination of green manufacturing groups and a “viable avenue for recycling flexible packaging.”

With the bills now before the governor, Newsom will have until Sept. 30 to either sign them into law or issue a veto.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KGET 17.