The California Legislature has passed two bills banning plastic bags for shoppers — again. The last time the California Legislature passed a bag ban, it was for single-use bags, and the result was an overall increase in plastic bags in landfills, due to stores switching over to providing the “reusable” bags that are thicker.
The California single-use bag ban went into effect in 2016, after which plastic bag waste increased by 47%.
“SB 1053 closes the loophole to the original ban on film plastic bags enacted 10 years ago that has allowed stores to sell customers thicker plastic bags that meet certain recyclability standards. However, the truth is almost none of those bags are recycled and they end up in landfills, polluting the environment,” Sen. Catherine Blakespear, D-Encinitas, the sponsor of the Senate bill, said.
“California’s original ban on plastic bags hasn’t worked out as planned, and sadly, the state’s plastic bag waste has increased dramatically since it went into effect,” Blakespear said.
In Anchorage, the Municipal Assembly passed a bag ban in 2018, and it went into effect in September of 2019 after being signed into law by former Mayor Ethan Berkowitz. The law makes it illegal for a retailer to provide any plastic shopping bags for a purchaser to carry away goods. Retailers are forced to charge for paper bags they provide to customers.
There has been no study released in Anchorage that shows whether the 2019 bag ban has led to the increase or decrease in waste at landfills. The Anchorage ordinance is different from California’s, which had allowed for the “multiple use” plastic bags to be sold. But beginning in January of 2026, only bags made with at least 50% recycled paper may be provided in California.
