Beginning January 1, 2023, consumers in Colorado must pay a 10-cent fee to businesses for each plastic bag they take out of the store. By 2024, the total ban-which will be subject to stringent exemptions-will be fully implemented.
A bill that was approved by the state legislature in 2021 and made into law by Governor Jared Polis is the cause of this new regulation.
Plastic Bag Fees
The fee, which is exempt from the 2.9% state sales tax, could go up if a town, city, or county adopts a higher fee.
As long as they can show proof of enrollment in one of the programs, people who are in state or federal food assistance programs are exempt from paying the fees.
Businesses must submit 60% of the bag-fee money they make to the municipality where they do business. The payment will be transferred to the county if the business is located in an unincorporated area of the county.
The funds would have to go to waste-diversion programs like outreach and education as well as initiatives like bag-free enforcement costs.
Businesses will retain the remaining 40% of the plastic bag-fee revenue. Stores are not required to send their bag-fee revenue to their county or municipality if they collect less than $20 in a given quarter; they are free to keep the money instead.
No Plastic Bags in Colorado by 2024
Starting in 2024, the 2021 bill outlaws the sale of all single-use plastic bags in Colorado. Restaurants that prepare or serve food in small portions for immediate consumption on- or off-premises would also be exempt, as would retailers with three or fewer locations that only do business in Colorado.
Businesses that still sell plastic bags are required to charge at least 10 cents per bag. If a county or city enacts a higher fee, the cost might increase.
Boulder estimated a 68% decrease in bags when it put in place its ordinance enforcing a 10-cent fee in 2013, which was about ten years ago, 9News reports.
No More Styrofoam, Too
The use of plastic bags is not the only thing being phased out. The 2021 bill also outlaws styrofoam products throughout the state beginning on January 1, 2024. Only restaurants will be allowed to use styrofoam products for takeaway food after that day until all of their current stock has been used up.
Read also: 1300 Volunteers Pick Nearly 15,000 Pounds Garbage From Yosemite National Park, Plastic at 70%
Plastic Bag and Styro Fees
Businesses that violate the new plastic bag fee and styrofoam regulations will be subject to lawsuits from municipalities and cities. Additionally, they have the authority to impose fines of $500 for a second offense and $1,000 for a third or subsequent offense.
Each infraction may result in a fine during a retail transaction. In other words, a company would only be considered to have broken the law once if it illegally distributed 10 plastic bags during a single transaction.
The measure also nullifies a state rule that prevents local governments from imposing plastic material restrictions that are stricter than those set forth by the state, The Colorado Sun reports.
Cities Against Plastic Bags.
There are several eminent cities and counties with plastic bag bans and fees, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Los Angeles, Boston, Boulder, Chicago, Montgomery County, New York, San Francisco, Portland, Maine, Seattle, and Washington (District of Columbia) are among them.
California passed legislation enforcing a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags at big-box retailers in August 2014, making it the first state to do so. Additionally, the bill mandated a 10-cent minimum fee for compostable, reusable plastic, and recycled paper bags at specific locations.
Related article: California: First State to Phase Out Pre-Checkout Bags, Single-Use Plastics From Grocery Stores