Signatures submitted to put California’s plastic bag ban before voters

December 30, 2014

By Tyler King

California is set to become the first state in the nation to ban plastic single-use carryout bags, with stage one of the ban commencing in July 2015. The American Progressive Bag Alliance (APBA), an industry group representing plastic bag manufacturers, has a different plan, which might put the historic ban on hold. APBA quickly organized a veto referendum campaign in an attempt to get a Plastic Bag Ban Veto Referendum placed on the November 8, 2016, ballot. APBA and allies had 90 days to collect 504,760 valid signatures. On December 29, 2014, the final day of the referendum petition drive, opponents of the bag ban submitted over 800,000 unverified signatures, or 300,000 more than were required.

The plastic bag ban was heralded by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) as "a step in the right direction," and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-20) said the "new law will greatly reduce the flow of billions of single-use plastic bags that litter our communities and harm our environment each year." SB 270, the legislation banning single-use plastic bags, would allow stores to provide such bags for meat, bread, produce, bulk food and perishable items. Under SB 270, $2 million would be appropriated to state plastic bag manufacturers for the purpose of helping them retain jobs and transition to making thicker, multi-use, recycled plastic bags. Also, consumers using a payment card or voucher issued by the California Special Supplemental Food Program, a public assistance program, would not be charged for non-plastic bags, for which other consumers would pay 10¢.

Lee Califf, Executive Director of APBA, deemed the 10¢ charge for reusable bags as "a back room deal between the grocers and union bosses to scam California consumers out of billions of dollars without providing any public benefit – all under the guise of environmentalism." His group's campaign is in full-swing, with the APBA's ballot measure campaign committee raising $3,813,668 from nine sources, all of which are plastics producers, in the past 90 days. Although APBA has raised almost $4 million in contributions and turned in over 800,000 signatures, the veto referendum hasn't been certified for the ballot yet, and an investigation might stand in the group's way.

Supporters of the plastic bag ban filed a complaint with the California Secretary of State's office in mid-December, contending that referendum proponents were misleading citizens in attempts to get them to sign their petitions. Examples of alleged misleading included telling citizens that signing a petition would support the ban or even create a nationwide ban, while the petition would actually give voters the opportunity to overturn the law. About 50 people have come forward claiming they were misled by signature collectors.

If the veto referendum campaign fails to get SB 270 placed on the ballot, it will go into effect for big businesses in 2015 and for small businesses in 2016. If the referendum is certified for the ballot, the ban will be put on hold until voters get a chance to decide on the issue on the 2016 general election ballot.

See also

• California Proposition 67, Plastic Bag Ban Veto Referendum (2016)
• California 2016 ballot propositions
• Laws governing the initiative process in California
• Signature requirements for ballot measures in California