Lawmaker Proposes Plastic Bag Tax
By: Chris Whited, KRBC News
Updated: March 2, 2009
Choosing plastic over paper at the checkout could cost you more in the future. State Representative Rafael Anchia of Dallas has proposed a bill to tax plastic shopping bags.Under the bill, consumers would be charged seven-cents for each plastic bag. The tax would go to help fund local recycling programs and a small portion would be retained by the retailers.
Other states are debating a similar charge for the bags that often blow around as litter and clog up the landfill systems. Anchia says the bags increase the cost for communities working to clean up the public areas. The proposal has been introduced in the Texas House of Representatives for this session of the legislature.
