The Montgomery County Council unanimously voted Tuesday to approve a proposed near-complete ban on the use of plastic shopping bags in the county.
Once signed into law by County Executive Marc Elrich, the legislation will prohibit retail establishments from providing plastic shopping and carryout bags, with some exceptions. Establishments would be allowed to provide paper bags at a 10-cent tax per bag, a 5-cent increase over the current tax.
The “Bring Your Own Bag” bill was sponsored by council President Kate Stewart (D-Dist. 4) and co-sponsored by Vice President Will Jawando (D-At-large) and councilmembers Natali Fani-Gonzàlez (D-Dist. 6), Evan Glass (D-At-large) and Laurie-Anne Sayles (D-At-large).
“Plastic bags can take more than 1,000 years to decompose, and as the plastic breaks down, micro plastics are leached into our soil and water, which impacts human health as well as local flora and fauna,” Stewart said during a media briefing Monday. “This bill encourages people to bring reusable bags with them shopping, and improves the process for our local businesses.”
The ban will go into effect Jan. 1, 2026. The legislation was originally drafted to go into effect July 1, but councilmembers voted Tuesday to change the date to provide more time to educate businesses and residents about the bag tax before it goes into effect.
The county currently imposes a 5-cent tax on plastic bags; that tax will be repealed once the law gores into effect. A June 2023 report from the county Office of Inspector General revealed the county lost up to a potential $8.2 million from not properly enforcing its plastic carryout bag tax that was enacted in 2012.
The legislation approved Tuesday allows retailers to provide a plastic bag for exceptions such as prescription drugs purchases and drycleaning items, and to hold perishable items such as meat. Newspaper mailer bags will also be allowed.
The 10-cent tax on paper bags will not apply to those exceptions either and also will not apply to paper bags provided for restaurant leftovers, food delivery or fast food passed through a drive-through window. Customers who receive Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and/or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits also will be exempt from the tax.
Stewart said during Monday’s media briefing that the county Department of Environmental Protection is producing reusable bags made from recycled cotton that will be distributed to constituents for free at community events.
A growing trend
Other Maryland jurisdictions, including Anne Arundel, Baltimore and Prince George’s counties, and the cities of Annapolis, Baltimore and Frederick, have passed similar bans on plastic bags, indicating a growing trend within the state.
The council’s January public hearing on the proposed legislation drew an unusually high number of speakers who testified in support and opposition. Supporters said it was vital to pass the ban in order to limit waste created by single-use plastics as well as the litter they create.
“[Plastic bags] are harmful to the environment. They’re unnecessary. People adapt to their elimination, and there’s no credible downside in banning them related to health,” Diane Bild of Beyond Plastics Montgomery County, a local chapter of a national organization advocating for reduced use of single-use plastics, said during the Jan. 15 hearing. “Some estimates indicate that each resident in the U.S. uses [one plastic] bag per day on average. So for the 1 million residents of Montgomery County, that’s contributing a significant amount of waste.”
But critics of the proposed ban cited a variety of concerns, including loss of convenience, and were particularly opposed to the potential increased tax on paper bags.
“We’re nickel and dimed enough. All our assessments are up. The tax base of Maryland is going down,” former state delegate Robin Ficker of Boyds said during the hearing. “Come on, we don’t want to be nickel and dimed. We’re not an ATM anymore.”
County businesses such as grocery stores, convenience stores and restaurants have been required to charge the 5-cent tax on single-use plastic and paper bags since the council passed a bill in 2011 “to help fund the county’s stormwater management program to support the goals of a cleaner environment,” according to the inspector general’s report.
The tax also was created to encourage residents to use their own reusable bags when shopping and to limit plastic waste, according to the inspector general’s office.
