Plastic bag restrictions take effect in Anne Arundel County

Free plastic shopping bags in Anne Arundel County are now a thing of the past.

After more than two months of debate last summer, the Anne Arundel County Council passed a bill last June banning the free distribution of plastic shopping bags. As of Monday, retailers may no longer offer them to customers and paper bags will carry a 10-cent tax starting Feb. 1. The law does not apply within the city of Annapolis.

The goal of the restriction, according to the bill’s sponsors, Democratic council members Lisa Rodvien, of Annapolis; Julie Hummer, of Laurel; and Allison Pickard, of Glen Burnie; was to limit the number of single-use plastic bags in the county that can ultimately end up in local waterways and harm wildlife. It also aims to encourage residents to bring reusable bags when shopping. Rodvien said she would like to see paper bags go someday soon as well, but plastic is a critical start.

“They get in our waterways. They get in the boat propellers of our watermen as they’re doing work,” Rodvien said at a council meeting last April. “This is the first step in getting some of that big plastic out of our lives.”

Public opinion was generally divided throughout the legislative process with retailers voicing concern that the inconvenience would deter residents from shopping locally, while environmental advocates applauded the council for prioritizing the cleanliness of the county’s water system for both sea life and humans.

Residents had mixed opinions. In her online testimony, Ann Rubin, of Annapolis, said this solution seemed the only way to profoundly “change the behavior” of local shoppers; Louis Bertolotti, of Hanover, said he chose to live in Anne Arundel County because he felt “nickel and dimed” in other jurisdictions. Now this county is no better, he said.

Goods that are exempt from the plastic bag ban include fresh flowers, dry-cleaning, newspapers, ice, baked goods, bulk grocery items like nuts and seeds, seafood, live fish, raw meat and loose tobacco. Restaurants and pharmacies packaging prescriptions may provide paper bags without charging the tax, as well, according to the bill.

The bill was passed by all council members save for Shannon Leadbetter, a Crofton Republican, who has long opposed blanket restrictions created and enforced by the government.

“I don’t know that a government mandate, a requirement, the way this is structured, is the right answer,” she said last June.

The Anne Arundel County Department of Health will enforce and monitor the rollout of the law at food service facilities, while the Department of Inspections and Permits will oversee non-food service retail establishments. After a warning following the first infraction violators will be fined $500 on the first offense and $1,000 for subsequent violations.

Annapolis may not be far behind in passing similar legislation.

A bag ban bill before the Annapolis City Council was withdrawn by sponsor Alderman Rob Savidge, a Ward 7 Democrat , in April 2020 due to concerns about the impact on the local economy as the pandemic set in. A similar bill will be introduced soon by Savidge and Alderman Brooks Schandelmeier, a Ward 5 Democrat.

Schandelmeier said the pair are “trying to iron out how to approach exemptions on schools and some other issues, but it will be introduced shortly.”