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Oregon State Legislators have just passed house bill 2509, The bill that would ban plastic grocery bags/ impose a tax on paper bags. The law will be enforced in much of the northern part of the state by July 1st 2019. The bill calls for grocers, and restaurants to charge for paper bags at five cents a piece. The Supporters of this bill claim this will reduce plastic bags being thrown into our water ways and oceans. It now goes to the desk of Governor Kate Brown, and is expected to be signed. Oregon is also considering a ban on plastic straws, styrofoam containers next.

This ” feel good” ban only seems to find a way to gouge Oregonians into another tax, Five cents per paper bag which were otherwise free. Does making this state plastic bag free really reduce the pollution in oceans? I doubt it will make much of a difference. The amount of plastic in other products that gets thrown away on a regular basis will eclipse any impact of banning plastic bags, hence this is why I believe this is just another way to get more money from residence. Something the liberals in Salem do not want you to remember is, plastic bags were favored and encouraged for use in the late 80’s and early 90’s to fight the timber industry and paper mills during the whole spotted owl debacle.

If Oregon wanted to be productive at all, they would team up with Southern Oregon’s booming hemp industry to make bags. This way we could be supporting a local industry and using a product that is plant based. I doubt Salem even considered this to be a alternative.