Fairfax County board approves plastic bag tax
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors passed a 5-cent tax on disposable plastic bags Sept. 14.
The new tax takes effect Jan. 1, 2022, and applies to bags provided to customers at grocery stores, convenience stores, and drug stores. The ordinance aims to reduce plastic bags in waterways, where they harm wildlife and water quality.
The revenue from the tax will go toward environmental cleanup programs, pollution and litter mitigation, educational programs on environmental waste reduction, and reusable bags for lower-income households.
The measure was approved by a 9-1 vote. The lone vote against it was cast by Supervisor Pat Herrity (Springfield).
Retailers will get 2 cents from the tax collected on each plastic bag through Dec. 31, 2022, which will help them make the switch to environmentally friendly alternatives. This discount drops to 1 cent on Jan. 1, 2023.
The Fairfax County approval of the tax follows Virginia General Assembly legislation enacted in 2020 allowing localities to adopt taxes on disposable plastic bags.
Related story: Board of Supervisors sets hearing on proposed plastic bag tax
More than 35 people spoke at the Board of Supervisors hearing on Sept. 14.
People who testified against the tax called it government overreach. They said it would burden people who are struggling economically during the pandemic, and said plastic bags can and should be recycled.
Those who support the tax spoke about the need to reduce waste in the face of climate change and noted that plastic never fully decomposes. It breaks down into micro-particles, harming wildlife and polluting drinking water and the food supply.
“Plastic bags are one of the most common items found during community cleanups of our parks, streams, and lakes,” said Supervisor James Walkinshaw (Braddock), the chief proponent of the ordinance. “Extensive studies demonstrate plastic bag fees and taxes reduce the amount of plastic bag litter in our environment.”
He disputed Herrity’s contention that plastic bags are easily recycled, noting that it’s a chemical reversion process that is very expensive. Very few private companies recycle plastic bags and the Chinese market has collapsed, he said. Even bags deposited in bins at grocery stores often aren’t recycled.
Supervisor Rodney Lusk (Lee) said the plastic bag tax should be called a fee, rather than a tax, because only customers who use the bags are the ones who would pay for them.
Supervisor Penny Gross (Mason) acknowledged people will have to be educated about the bag tax, but said they will get used to it. “This is the right thing to do.”
In urging the board to pass the measure, Board Chair Jeffrey McKay said, “This will make for a better planet for us and for future generations.”
13 responses to “Fairfax County board approves plastic bag tax”
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Of course they approve it.
Who on earth in FF county would miss an opportunity to virtue signal like that on the expense of the poor and the needy?
I've ran out of words to express my disgust from these ppl.
@anon
And yet you'll be back here to offer new words tomorrow about the next bit of tyranny that FFX county engaged in.
The government collects revenue to offset operations/maintenance/nuisance/environmental cost. The horror.
Blanket taxes bad. Specific taxes for specific costs bad. As much as anonymous calls rails against Ffx county and specifically the mason district as being a spit hole, you folks certainly don't seem to support doing anything to change it.
This is one of the best actions the BOS has taken in recent memory. There is a cost to the environment that each one of these bags creates. What would you rather have: the inconvenience of paying an extra nickel each time you shop (horrors!), or taking a bite out of a delicious lobster-plastic bake next time you dine at Red Lob??
Hey StudyGeek – great point! Based on the actions our BOS takes, this probably does rank up there as being one of the best as the bar is pretty low.
11:03, I assume you mean you've run out of disgust FOR these people, and say that your tolerance level is about that of a toddler who's missed their nap. Using less plastic is not virtue signaling, and it wouldn't have to affect those with lower incomes financially since those bags can be reused many times over.
Of course, maybe you didn't even read the article, because it plainly states that:
"The revenue from the tax will go toward environmental cleanup programs, pollution and litter mitigation, educational programs on environmental waste reduction, and reusable bags for lower-income households."
Those with lower incomes/living in lower-income areas are often hurt the most by pollution. This program does something good for everyone, but seeing and admitting that makes it harder to be angry, so carry on, Grouchy.
–kda
OMG, you might have plastic in your lobster??
Poor baby.
I'll remind that on the next grocery run we do for ppl in need in this community, that now they need to pay for plastic bags so poor babies like you would not have plastic when the dine on their freaking lobsters.
Just use paper bags, sheesh. Same cost so helps enivro and the poor.
Glad to see this approved. This should really be a no brainer. The equity argument is pretty weak, low-income households can reuse bags just as easily as anyone else they just need incentive to do it.
As for the lobster argument, I have to almost assume that this is trolling. It may be the first time I have seen someone just straight-up support environmental destruction without trying to circumvent the issue.
Of course, there are lots of problems with doing this now. Health officials warned us not to use our reusable bags during the Covid pandemic. So most stores went to plastic. Remember when we went to plastic bags because people complained that paper bags caused trees to die? The BOS could have waited until the pandemic was over to do this. Pretty soon, they will want us all to walk to the store (not use our cars), put our groceries in backpacks and walk home. Can't wait.
Well, yeah. Walking is highly preferable to driving. It's less wasteful, more healthy, and better for the environment. If only our landscape was more conducive to walking.
Unfortunately the majority of people around here think exactly the way you do. It is impossible for anyone around here to conceptualize what it means to not drive to literally every destination they want to go to. Even if the distance between the destinations is less than a quarter mile.
I think like that because we don't all live in a little village (a quarter mile from everything). The Washington suburbs are not laid out that way and never will be. So cars are going to be needed regardless of what the BOS wishes for.
How many who are against plastic grocery bags buy kitchen trash bags?
The company that picks up my trash doesn't care for loose refuse, and paper-bagged stuff in a garbage can is an easy target for critters, so I usually buy recycled plastic bags, but they're more expensive. Before I pitch anything, I look at how I can reuse it or recycle or maybe compost it first–or start by asking myself should I even buy it/should I have bought it in the first place.
The idea is to reduce your impact where you can, when you can. It's the big picture of your overall legacy, and no, it isn't perfect–ever. Voltaire is credited with saying that the perfect should never be the enemy of the good. Can you wrap your mind around that or are you just being an arrogant troll?
Naturally, the people with the most money and the biggest companies could do the most good, but despite all their resources and green-washing, most of them won't. That's where individual accountability comes in. At the end of it all, what would you rather say: that you tried in earnest, or that you remained deliberately ignorant and/or said, "I really don't care, so eff it all"?
-kda