Retailers face fines up to $5,000 a day under new Napa County plastic bag ban

"The Napa County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday passed a ban on retailers providing plastic carryout bags to customers in the county's unincorporated areas starting next year, closing a loophole that had allowed thicker plastic bags marketed as reusable. The new rule aligns county policy with a forthcoming state law. Retailers will have until the ban takes effect to use up their remaining plastic checkout bags."

"After that, stores can offer paper bags made with at least 50% recycled content, charing 10 cents per bag with the fee itemized on receipts. RELATED: Why plastic bags will be gone from California grocery stores by the end of the year Businesses that violate the ordinance could face administrative fines starting at $1,000 per day and increasing to a maximum of $5,000 per day for repeated violations. Supervisors on Tuesday also approved updates to a separate ordinance requiring food providers in the unincorporated county"

"to use reusable or compostable foodware and accessories. That law, also effective Jan. 1, prohibits polystyrene containers and requires businesses to keep records of recyclable and compostable foodware for at least three years. Calistoga is currently the only city in Napa County with a comparable ordinance, which took effect in March 2024. Other jurisdictions are expected to consider similar requirements soon, county planner Ryan Melendez said. Many of the revisions to the county ordinance were intended to make the language clearer. But the changes also"

Napa County will ban retailers from providing plastic carryout bags to customers in unincorporated areas beginning next year, closing a loophole that allowed thicker reusable-marketed plastic bags. Retailers may use remaining plastic bags until the ban takes effect; thereafter stores may offer paper bags with at least 50% recycled content and charge 10 cents per bag with the fee itemized on receipts. Violations carry administrative fines starting at $1,000 per day and up to $5,000 per day for repeated offenses. Food providers must use reusable or compostable foodware, cannot use polystyrene, and must retain records for three years. Enforcement will be partly complaint-based and include Environmental Health Division inspections.

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