Seattle officials propose 20-cent grocery-bag fee (Jan 1, if city council approves)

The Seattle Times ^ | April 3, 2008 | Sharon Pian Chan

[Stoat]

(edit)

 

Nickels and City Council President Richard Conlin proposed a 20-cent "green fee" Wednesday on all disposable bags to encourage customers to carry their milk and eggs home in their own bags.

Forget the canvas sacks at home? Shoppers at grocery, convenience and drug stores will pay the price starting Jan. 1, if the City Council approves. A family buying six bags of groceries a week would spend $62.40 a year in bag fees. The city will issue one free reusable shopping bag to each household.

"The answer to the question 'Paper or plastic?' should be 'Neither,' " Nickels said at a news conference. "Both harm the environment. Every piece of plastic ever made is still with us in the environment, and the best way to handle waste is not to create it in the first place."

The proposed fee, the first of its kind in the nation, is the latest green legislation from a mayor intent on making environmental stewardship his legacy.

Nickels and Conlin have been working on a "zero-waste" strategy to reduce trash and encourage recycling. They also announced Wednesday a proposed ban on plastic-foam food containers and cups at food-service businesses, starting Jan. 1. Nonrecyclable plastic containers and utensils would be banned in 2010.

"It's about the use of scarce resources, about pollution of our environment, about litter in our streets and parks and the costs, both economically and environmentally, of throwing away a piece of Earth we have an opportunity to protect and preserve," Conlin said at the news conference, which Councilmembers Tim Burgess and Sally Clark also attended.

(heavily edited to comply with Free Republic posting requirements)

[gunservative]

What are dog owners going to use to pick up their animal’s waste? Cloth bags?

[Just Lori]

YOU are such a great American!

[Just Lori]

...fill out your name and phone.

No,thanks.

[Just Lori]

LOL!

[Just Lori]

Have I told you lately that YOU are a GREAT American?

[Stoat]

To be collected and spent by the political class.

It seems that you are objecting to lawful taxation, enacted by your hardworking public servants.  Your ip address has been recorded, and you should soon expect a visit from a group of enforcement / education officials who will explain the matter to you in greater detail, since you obviously are having difficulty understanding your role as a taxpayer.

 

" New Jersey Tax Education Specialists"

(Here in NJ they say they want to tax fast food. They think we don't know they're already taxing fast food at 7%, which means NJ probably makes more on a Big Mac than the McDonald's shareholders do.)

There is a particular photo involving  Ronald McDonald and a young lady on a bench that has been wildly popular on the internet for several years....naturally, it would not be in keeping with Free Republic site rules and so I won't post it here, but a variation on that theme comes to mind that illustrates your post...........

To be collected and spent by the political class.

It seems that you are objecting to lawful taxation, enacted by your hardworking public servants.  Your ip address has been recorded, and you should soon expect a visit from a group of enforcement / education officials who will explain the matter to you in greater detail, since you obviously are having difficulty understanding your role as a taxpayer.

 

" New Jersey Tax Education Specialists"

(Here in NJ they say they want to tax fast food. They think we don't know they're already taxing fast food at 7%, which means NJ probably makes more on a Big Mac than the McDonald's shareholders do.)

[FORTRUTHONLY]

My apologies, you are 100% correct.

[Marie2]

If I didn’t get the paper bags (to contain my recycling) and plastic bags (to line my small trash cans) I would buy them.

Here in SF, the big chains can’t use the plastic bags any more. So I buy small trash can liners.

And this helps the environment in exactly what way????

[mountainbunny]

I agree with the charge for plastic bags. What a waste! I have used those large Sam’s insulated bags for years, and resent the waste that the throw-away bags produce.

I... don't know.

I have started using reusable bags in the last few years and like the fact that I get a nickel back every time I use them. But that nickel probably doesn't make up for the huge number of people who use one-time bags. I help pay for their bags, the time and energy it takes to make them, move them, stock them, refurnish them, etc., and I resent that.

Also, everyone who gripes about the price of gasoline or food needs to have their head examined if they don't use reusable bags - you can argue about recycling, but not using something to begin with uses less petroleum and that just can't be disputed.

OPEC getting less money cannot be a bad thing.

But actually charging a fee? I just don't know if that will solve anything.

[FORTRUTHONLY]

In Plantation, Florida (in Fort Lauderdale) you do not pay for trash pickup. You do have to pay for the bags which are available at the local stores. It’s quite ingenious and quite effective into getting people to reconsider trash and recycling. The more bags you use the more $$ will cost you. Now that’s smart government. You do not pay for stuff which you do not use...

[Stoat]

Why not mandate all Seattle residents just kill themselves? That will reduce the city’s carbon footprint down to 0.

The downside of this would be that it would eliminate the City tax base, necessitating the downsizing of the Mayor's limo fleet, his hooker budget and the City Council's Caribbean junkets-masquerading-as-factfinding-missions scheme would need restructuring.

It would also expose this tax for the grand lie that it is, which could never be tolerated

 

"We don't care....because we don't have to"

[kempo]

Not to worry. That Volcano they set next to will one day take care of their BS carbon foot print.

[Stoat]

elect idiots and pay forever for that mistake

The few remaining sane Seattleites (hopefully I'm one of them) have been doing out utmost to turn the tide of Socialism here for decades, but the Left keeps growing here like a cancer. 

[NormsRevenge]

been doing out utmost to turn the tide of Socialism here for decades, but the Left keeps growing here like a cancer.

—

we suffer the same thing here in California, and oddly enough, within the Ca GOP as well.

and Yes, spending OPM is a disease. there is no cure short of moving elsewhere.

[CapnJack]

“Why not mandate all Seattle residents just kill themselves? That will reduce the city’s carbon footprint down to 0.”

Capital Idea!

[Stoat]

That would be regressive. They’ll need another government giveaway program for the poor to compensate. Isn’t it neat how this works?

Socialist gauleiters have spent hundreds of years fine-tuning plans such as this.  It's gotten to the point where it's implementation is nearly seamless and is usually devoid of any serious opposition.

[Stoat]

obviously the same dogooder that feels they have the right to tell someone not to smoke ... while undoubtedly they inject with botox.

Notice how they also scream, moan and cry about how utterly EVIL cigarettes are (and, by extension, those who smoke them) and yet they don't ban them as a public health hazard....instead they tax them so that they can make money from an activity that they vilify at every opportunity.

Same people who want this poor Bitter, God Lovin, Magic negroe despising, good ole boy to give up his guns and F-350 pick-up cause we ain't inthe same elite intellectual club they have self elevated their worthless selves to.

The term 'intellectual' has definitely been defined-down ever since it became the de-facto codeword for "nosy, hysterical Leftist/Marxist/Socialist/Communist"

I bet this individual is soooo concerned that they press for a helmet las for those of us who enjoy our scooters.

Soon they will impose a heavy tax on motorcycles because they want to force everyone onto bicycles.....it's the environmentally-correct thing to do, after all.

dirtbags.... no other word for them

I could think of a few others, but most of them would cause me to get banned from Free Republic  :-)

obviously the same dogooder that feels they have the right to tell someone not to smoke ... while undoubtedly they inject with botox.

Notice how they also scream, moan and cry about how utterly EVIL cigarettes are (and, by extension, those who smoke them) and yet they don't ban them as a public health hazard....instead they tax them so that they can make money from an activity that they vilify at every opportunity.

Same people who want this poor Bitter, God Lovin, Magic negroe despising, good ole boy to give up his guns and F-350 pick-up cause we ain't inthe same elite intellectual club they have self elevated their worthless selves to.

The term 'intellectual' has definitely been defined-down ever since it became the de-facto codeword for "nosy, hysterical Leftist/Marxist/Socialist/Communist"

I bet this individual is soooo concerned that they press for a helmet las for those of us who enjoy our scooters.

Soon they will impose a heavy tax on motorcycles because they want to force everyone onto bicycles.....it's the environmentally-correct thing to do, after all.

dirtbags.... no other word for them

[ByDesign]

What about the plastic the food is contained in?

[Stoat]

What about the plastic the food is contained in?

From the article:

Nickels and Conlin have been working on a "zero-waste" strategy to reduce trash and encourage recycling. They also announced Wednesday a proposed ban on plastic-foam food containers and cups at food-service businesses, starting Jan. 1. Nonrecyclable plastic containers and utensils would be banned in 2010.

and

Nickels said everyone must play a role in stopping climate change. "It's important to recognize that global warming and trying to prevent climate disruption is going to require all of us to change our behavior. That is a given," he said.

Never mind that the entire notion that plastic bags are evil is based upon a willful mistake:

Series of blunders turned the plastic bag into global villain (Enviros misread() report)

[HardStarboard]

This is the thanks I get for doing a pretty good job of recycling plastic bags in the Seattle recycling program.

If I gotta pay 0.20 Cents for a bag, I propose we recycle them....in front of Seattle City Hall, or better yet, in his neighborhood.