Long Beach Bag Ban

Long Beach City Council voted to ban the plastic checkout bags in the port city and put a ten cent fee on single-use paper bags in the Long Beach City area on May 24, 2011 after the second reading of the ordinance. Mayor Bob Foster subsequently signed the ordinance. The ban will specifically affect supermarkets, large pharmacies, farmers markets and retailers in the city limits. After the state legislators failed to pass AB 1998 last year, a statewide ordinance banning single-use plastic bags and putting a fee on paper bags, Long Beach became one of the 7 municipalities in California to step up with a bag ordinance on their own.