Taxing Plastic and Paper Bags, Senate Bill Could Make Grocery Shopping Green
Environmentalists applaud proposed measure, industry argues it won't do much to reduce litter.
By Tom Johnson, NJ Spotlight If legislators have their way, when New Jerseyans go shopping in the future, they may pay a small tax if they want their groceries packed in a paper or plastic bag. In a move to curb plastic bags from littering the landscape and waterways, the Senate Environment and Energy Committee approved a bill (S-812) Monday that would impose a five-cent surcharge on consumers who fail to bring a reusable bag to their grocery or convenience store. The move was opposed by manufacturers of plastic bags, who claimed stores already are voluntarily recycling plastic bags, which they and a member of the Senate panel argued constitute a minute portion of the litter that winds up in streets and waterways. Environmentalists have …
