Fri 06/14/19

The Cuyahoga County Council voted this month to ban plastic bags starting January 1st, 2020. The ban was approved 8 – 3 by the Council, and was led by Democratic member Sunny Simon, who currently serves as the Chair on the Education, Environment and Sustainability Committee.

The legislation bans plastic bags that are not 100% recyclable or made from at least 40 percent of recycled material. There are exemptions for restaurant leftovers, carry-out orders, bags for newspapers, dry-cleaning, meat, pet waste, prescriptions, or partially-consumed bottles of wine.

However, the ban may come under fire with a new Bill attempting to be passed by the Ohio Legislature: House Bill No. 242. The Bill seeks to disallow counties from imposing a tax, fee, assessment, or other charge on “auxiliary containers.” The Bill goes on to include plastic bags as auxiliary containers, thus calling into question whose legislation would stand with hometown rule.

For now, Cuyahoga County has taken a step in the direction of sustainability – essentially preventing approximately 320 million plastic bags, that Cuyahoga residents use each year, from entering landfills. For more information on the subject contact the Cuyahoga County Council at 216-698-2010.