California Governor Gavin Newsom Is Banning Plastic Pags

Plastic bags will no longer be available in the state of California.

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new law on Sunday that will ban all plastic shopping bags. California already banned thin plastic shopping bags at supermarkets and other stores, but shoppers could purchase bags made with thicker plastic that were described as reusable or recyclable.

According to AP news, the new law will ban all shopping bags starting January 1, 2026. Consumers who don’t bring their own bags will now be asked if they want a paper bag. 

State Senator Catherine Blakespear, a bill supporter, shared a statement on the X, formerly Twitter, following the governor’s official action.

“This is a huge step forward in our efforts to reduce our dependency on #singleuse plastic in our state. I want to express my deepest gratitude to all the partners who worked tirelessly with us to make this law a reality,” Catherine Blakespear wrote. 

Back in 2014, legislation passed that banned single-use plastic bags at grocery stores and retail stores. According to the LA Times, stores were allowed to offer consumers “reusable” bags for a small fee. These types of bags included paper and high-density polyethylene plastic bags, which plastic companies argued could be reused.

This year, CALPIRG released a report showing that the volume of plastic bag waste in California had increased since 2014 because of the loophole in that law. In 2014, 157,385 tons of plastic bag waste was discarded in California. By 2021, it had skyrocketed to 231,072 — a 47% jump. 

Even accounting for an increase in population, the report noted, the number rose from 4.08 tons per 1,000 people in 2014 to 5.89 tons per 1,000 people in 2021. Moreover, beginning January 1, 2028, the definition of a recycled paper bag would change from one made from 40% recycled material to one with more than 50% recycled material.

According to The Hill, the California Public Interest Research Group (CALPIRG), an advocacy organization, only 2 percent of customers were reusing the plastic bags provided by stores, as they are harder to recycle. Not a single municipal recycling facility in California accepts them, the Los Angeles Times reported.

“Plastic bags create pollution in our environment and break into microplastics that contaminate our drinking water and threaten our health,” Jenn Engstrom, state director of CALPIRG, said. “Californians voted to ban plastic grocery bags in our state almost a decade ago, but the law clearly needed a redo. With the governor’s signature, California has finally banned plastic bags in grocery checkout lanes once and for all.”