L.A. Joins San Francisco, San Jose In Banning Plastic Bags
LOS ANGELES (CBS/AP) -- Los Angeles joined San Francisco and San Jose on Tuesday, as all three of the state's largest cities will now ban free plastic bags in grocery stores.
The L.A. City Council voted 9-1 to support a ban that will take effect Jan. 1 for large stores; small stores have until June 2014 to begin enforcing.
Under the law, shoppers will have to tote their own bags, or pay 10 cents each for paper bags. Stores will also be required to file quarterly reports on the number of paper bags purchased.
The city said it plans to hand out 1 million reusable bags in low-income areas.
It is estimated that about $2 million a year is spent to clean up plastic bag litter in Los Angeles.
The plastic bag bans in San Francisco and San Jose are already in effect.
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