A new law banning plastic grocery bags in California is about to go into effect, expanding many city-level ordinances to all of the state.
Beginning July 1, 2015, shoppers at any grocery store anywhere in the state will need to bring their own bags or pay an additional 10 cents per paper bag.
“No, that's not fair. You’re charging me tax and everyone else,” said Mary Dennis, who was shopping Tuesday when Gov. Jerry Brown signed the law. “I'm already getting charged. So don't ask me to pay for the bags.”
Every grocery store and pharmacy statewide will be banned from providing single-use plastic bags under the new law, which makes California the first state in the nation to have a comprehensive ban on the use of the bags that often end up littering the landscape.
“It's bad for the environment,” said Andre Weathersby. “If you take a bag and bury it, it's gonna be there for years.”
Retired meat cutter-turned-mobile barbecue business owner Weathersby was coming out of the grocery store in Gardena Tuesday with his cart filled with items, but only one bag.
“None of my markets is completely gone green. There's no plastics involved. We use brown bags. I use paper cups for my barbecue sauce. And I'm totally against, really, the plastic,” he said.
There are already nearly 100 local bag ban ordinances currently in effect and the bill signed today will grandfather in existing ordinances, including the one in Los Angeles County.
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Store owners say customers are confused, but it’s just a matter of time before shoppers adjust.
“Just like any new laws, everybody has to get use to it.,” said Eddy Khatib, an employee at Save More Foods in Gardena. “Some people might not like it but the law is the law.”
