Holy crap....one dollar for every transaction???? Really? That is outragous. They are going to pad their coffers with this rule. I guess I would break down and use those ugly cloth bags for that price. In Europe, it is about 20 euro cents for a plastic bag for the entire bag!!! Not per item. That is much more reasonable.
That's the idea.
They aren't "environmentalists", they're Communists.
Which is to say they're bullys and thugs, always looking for a cheap extortion gig, since working is beneath them.
In my wife's hometown in Ukraine, plastic bags are for sale at the entrance to the large, outdoor markets. They're relatively cheap but needless to say, most shoppers will reuse bags until they're so stretched and torn, they can't be reused any longer.
I see nothing wrong with this. Waste is not a conservative value.