WASHINGTON – If Rep. Jim
Moran (D-VA) gets his way, paper or plastic will have a 5-cent fee at the
checkout line. Moran introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that
would put a nickel tax on plastic and paper bags distributed at supermarkets,
convenience stores and other retail shops, the Sun-Gazette reports.
Fee revenue would be
earmarked for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. “Small steps, like
replacing plastic bags with reusable ones, [yield] large returns in reducing
the amount of trash we create,” said Moran in a statement. “The results of this
waste can be found in our oceans, now home to floating landfills 10 times the
size of Virginia.”
Moran modeled his measure
on the District of Columbia’s tax on plastic bags, which was enacted in 2009.
Moran’s bill is the first one that would impose such a fee on bags in all 50
states and the District of Columbia. The representative said he wanted to lower
the use of plastic bags in the United States.
Massachusetts,
Rhode Island and California
are considering banning plastic bags. A plastic bag ban recently went into
effect in Austin,
Texas, while Sacramento’s
proposed ban is moving forward.