Article from Reason by Christian Britschgi.

In August 2018, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, vetoed a bill that would have imposed a five-cent fee on both paper and plastic carryout bags, arguing that the legislation did not do enough to protect the Garden State’s famed natural beauty.

“Single-use carryout bags—particularly plastic bags—represent a significant source of the litter that clutters our communities and mars New Jersey’s beautiful shoreline and parks,” wrote Murphy in his veto statement. “Instituting a five-cent fee on single-use bags that only applies to certain retailers does not go far enough.”

State legislators have clearly heard this message, floating proposals to ban not just plastic grocery bags, but all single-use bags—paper or plastic.

Working its way though the legislature right now is S2776. As written, the legislation would ban food service businesses and other retailers who have stores larger than 1,000 square feet from providing their customers with plastic bags. The bill would also naturally ban plastic straws.

Read the entire article at Reason.

Image Credit: Kevinmurrayphotography [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]