Another Minnesota City Will Charge Fees on Plastic Bag Users

Another Minnesota city has joined the growing movement to discourage the use of plastic bags by enforcing a fee for single-use bags.

The United Nations says up to 5 trillion plastic bags are used worldwide each year and the US Environmental Protection Agency says these types of bags are one of the worst causes of pollution in the entire world and can take up to 1,000 years to decompose.

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This Yahoo Finance report says 10 states have already banned plastic bags and numerous cities around the country, including a few in Minnesota, have started charging a fee to use them.

In 2020, Minneapolis started enforcing a fee for carryout bags. That rule says, “Retailers must charge a minimum five-cent fee per carryout bag. The fee is kept by the retailer and is not a tax. It can be put towards the cost of the bags, used for other expenses, or donated to charity. These fees are not taxable.”

The following year the city of Duluth adopted a similar policy. A statement on the city’s website says, “In an effort to reduce litter and the harmful environmental impact caused by single-use carryout bags, the Duluth City Council passed an ordinance requiring retailers to collect a fee from customers for each plastic carryout bag provided.”

Now, Edina’s City Council has approved a five-cent plastic bag fee that will go into effect next year. And, like Minneapolis, Edina business owners will keep the proceeds from the fees according to Bring Me the News.

The EPA says the purpose of the fees is to change habits and encourage reusable bags.