Governor Brown Should Kill Bill To Ban Plastic Bags
The bill to ban plastic grocery bags in California may not be the worst piece of legislation to cross Gov. Jerry Brown's desk this year, but it should be a contender for the title of Most Obnoxious. Combine crony capitalism and liberal condescension with pious environmentalism and a callous disregard for the Golden State's embattled manufacturing sector, and you have an apt description of Senate Bill 270.
Naturally, Inland residents are poised to get pinched. Again.
If enacted, the bill by Van Nuys Democrat Alex Padilla would require supermarkets and pharmacies to begin phasing out “single-use” plastic bags starting next July 1. It would allow grocers to charge 10 cents for paper and reusable plastic bags.
And to distinguish this bill from its earlier, failed incarnations, SB270 also offers $2 million in loans from “the Recycling Market Development Revolving Loan Subaccount in the Integrated Waste Management Account” to help manufacturers retool their factories to make the new, politically favored reusable bags.
SB270 appeared headed for defeat last week. But by Thursday, the Assembly had passed it 45-31, with the state Senate voting 22-15 the next day to send the bill to Brown.
What in the world happened? Did Greenpeace and the Sierra Club browbeat reluctant lawmakers into supporting a bill to combat the plastic litter blighting, as Padilla put it, “our beaches . . . our mountains, our deserts, and our rivers, streams and lakes”?
Goodness, no. It was an eleventh-hour deal between one of the largest supermarket chains in the nation and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union that made all the difference.
SB270 allows grocers to keep the 10-cent bag fees they will collect under the law. Well, as a wiseguy once said, a dime here and a dime there and pretty soon you're talking real money. The union wanted a cut, and withheld support from the bill until it had assurances it would get paid.
The details aren't known, but according to Jon Fleischman of the FlashReport.org, Safeway reportedly gave the UFCW what union leaders wanted. If you weren't aware, Safeway owns Vons and Pavilions. The chain was purchased for $9 billion last spring by Cerberus Capital, which also owns Albertsons. At some point soon, Albertsons and Vons stores will begin to close as the new owners consolidate their holdings.
A new revenue stream from grocery bags — which markets used to buy at cost and offer to customers for free — will make for a nice windfall. That isn't the market at work. That's crony capitalism.
True, plastic bags pose a litter problem. Padilla says plastic bag cleanup costs state and local governments $25 million a year. According to the California Manufacturers and Technology Association, Padilla's solution amounts to a $700 million tax on small businesses and consumers — which the major grocery chains will keep.
Does it matter that the bill would jeopardize 2,000 manufacturing jobs? Silly question! Did you ever stop and think that maybe they're the wrong 2,000 jobs?
A couple of weeks ago, I received an email from a reader who disliked my column about Inland Southern California's booming logistics industry. She pointed out, correctly, that not everyone makes the median wage of $43,000 that Amazon.com touted when it announced plans last month to open a new facility in Redlands. It's also fair to say that many warehouse jobs don't come close to that figure.
But the reader's conclusion was fascinating: “Better than nothing is a sad place to be.” No, better than nothing is something. Work is — or ought to be — better than welfare. Whether it's shipping TVs or making plastic bags, it's gainful employment. Threatening 2,000 blue-collar manufacturing jobs because they produce a suddenly disfavored product is the height of arrogance.
Every policy has unintended consequences, and SB270 is no different. One obvious consequence will be the return of paper bags, which cost more to make and certainly leave a larger carbon footprint, if you fret about such things.
Fact is, “single-use” is a misnomer.” Most people do reuse their bags. And when they're thrown away, plastic bags take up a tiny fraction of landfills. But that might not matter, either.
Will Brown sign SB270? He's been coy so far. His spokesman last week said the governor “hasn't taken a position.” He should bag this foolish bill.
This piece originally appeared in Riverside Press Enterprise
This piece originally appeared in Riverside Press Enterprise