The City Council here voted Tuesday to ban single-use plastic bags in any store that sells groceries and mandated that retailers charge 10 cents per paper bag if customers don't bring their own bags.
The vote in favor of the ban was 11-1. Because the vote was not unanimous, the council is required to vote on the ban again next week, with observers saying the outcome is unlikely to change. If the ban passes again, either outgoing Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa or Mayor-Elect Eric Garcetti, who takes office July 1, is expect the sign the ordinance to make it official.
A similar measure seeking to ban plastic bags across the state was defeated in the California legislature earlier this month.
According to Heal the Bay, an environmental group that favors the ban, "This is the biggest city in the nation to tackle the single-use bag addiction. It sends a strong signal to Sacramento that we need a statewide policy."
Several nearby cities, including Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Pasadena and Long Beach, already ban plastic bags.
Under the ordinance, grocery stores with $2 million or more in gross annual sales or stores with at least 10,000 square feet of retail space would have to phase out plastic bags by Jan. 1; smaller grocery stores would have until July 1, 2014, to eliminate plastic bags.
