Andy: Trash all the bags
ALBANY — Gov. Cuomo wants to ban the bags.
Cuomo on Monday unveiled legislation that would ban single-use, plastic carryout shopping bags in New York.
“The blight of plastic bags takes a devastating toll on our streets, our water and our natural resources, and we need to take action to protect our environment,” Cuomo said.
Under Cuomo’s proposal, bags used by “a restaurant, tavern or similar establishment to carry out or deliver food” would be exempt. Also exempt are bags used for newspaper delivery, garments and the purchase of uncooked meats or bulk items such as fruits, vegetables and nuts.
Compostable bags, trash bags and other plastic bags “prepackaged for sale to a customer” are not covered by Cuomo’s bill.
The bill, once approved, would also supersede any local laws governing bags. Currently, 10 municipalities in the state have plastic bag bans while some others, including Long Beach and Suffolk County, have enacted fees.
The legislation faces an uphill battle in the state Legislature, especially in the GOP-controlled state Senate.
A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan (RSuffolk County) did not comment.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) said he is “happy the governor took leadership on this,” but stopped short of endorsing the legislation. “We’ll look at the bill,” Heastie said.
New York State Conservative Party Chairman Michael Long urged the Legislature to defeat the measure.
“It’s more pandering to the left and trying to outflank Cynthia Nixon,” Long said, referring to the actress who is challenging Cuomo for the Democratic nomination. “(Cuomo) is supposed to be the governor for all the people, not just the governor of Cynthia Nixon.”
Environmentalists also expressed disappointment with Cuomo’s proposal, noting it exempts several types of plastic bags and does not impose a fee on paper bags to encourage the use of reusable bags,
“We think New York can go further,” said Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Research Group, who described Cuomo’s legislation as a “positive first step.’
Ted Potrikus, president of the Retail Council of New York State, said his organization was reviewing Cuomo’s proposal but added an “outright ban could be something that some of our members oppose.”
A ban on single-use plastic bags was one of several options put forward in January by a task force Cuomo created to study the issue of plastic bag waste.
Cuomo created the task force after he signed a measure that blocked the city from going forward with a 5-cent fee on plastic and paper disposable bags.
“If Gov. Cuomo has actually gotten serious about reducing the billions of plastic bags that New Yorkers send to landfills each month, it would be great news,” said Councilman Brad Lander (D-Brooklyn), who sponsored the since-blocked city law to put a fee on bags. “But this looks like electionyear Earth Day politics.”