Washington DC’s Bag Tax

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After my lovely winter holiday I grudgingly awoke Monday January 4th and made my way into the District for work.  I headed to Lawson’s to get breakfast.  Everything was exactly how I remembered it.  Until the check out.  As the checkout lady finished swiping my Visa, she asked if I wanted a bag.  I said sure, not really thinking much of it, but then she said, “For a bag I gotta charge you 5 cents extra”.  

Turns out she wasn’t just pulling my change.  Apparently the D.C. Council recently passed a .05 cent fee on all uses of plastic bags.  The law is pretty broad and even covers some retail clothing stores.  More on the details about the fee (which the D.C. council says is not a tax) can be found on NBC 4′s website here.

The proceeds from the fee will go to a fund to help clean up D.C.’s environment, specifically the Anacostia River.

Morally this seems like a good policy.  You don’t have to use disposable bags when you shop and we all probably should be nudged into this policy.  It is an easy way to limit waste.

Some thoughts and concerns I have:

1. The payout to the board members that are in charge of distributing this money.  I don’t know for sure, but I’d be willing to bet the large sum collected from every 5 cent transaction will line many pockets before it finally helps the environment.

2. How do I know that 5 cents is actually being reported after I’m charged?

3. What happens when a store does not charge? Is there another fee or penalty?

4. Will an underground bag market be born?  Secret alley dealings for stacks of plastic bags?

4.  Typically I’m against government meddling in economic affairs, but when a local government is doing it I am more willing to support it.  I’m not concerned if I know my money is going back to my own community.  I have a problem with federal meddling not local initiatives, but like most centralized ruling parties I don’t trust them to collect this money without ripping us off.

So what do you think?  Is this fee a good idea?   Did the government go too far? Not far enough?

Check out some other people’s thoughts here and here UDoTheDishes…

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