Stores In CT Once Again Collecting Fees For Reusable Plastic Bags

CONNECTICUT - It will cost you ever-so-slightly more at the grocery check out, effective immediately. The $0.10 fee for each single-use plastic bag is back.

Gov. Ned Lamont signed an Executive Order on March 26 that suspended the plastic bag fee on the premise that reusable bags would be less likely to spread the coronavirus. As it turns out, according to the latest guidance from the Connecticut Department of Public Health, reusable bags do not serve as a significant source of infection for COVID-19.

The suspension order was for three months, ending June 30, and the governor has decided not to renew it.

From July 1 forward, any Connecticut retailer that provides plastic bags to its customers in connection with a sale of goods is required to collect the $0.10 plastic bag fee. That dime is collected by retailers and remitted to the state Department of Revenue Services on their state sales and use tax return.

The newly-reinstated plastic bag fee is a boon to the environment, according to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. DEEP strongly encourages state residents who use reusable bags for shopping to continue to do so.

Got your reusable bags out of storage from beneath the sink? Here are some tips from the U.S. Department of Agriculture on how to keep them safe:

• Wash bags often. Cloth bags usually can be washed in a washing machine and plastic-lined bags can be scrubbed with hot water and soap and air-dried.
• Raw meats should always be put in a disposable plastic bags and the bags should be thrown away after one use.
• Use separate bags for meat, produce and packaged items to reduce cross-contamination.
• Have dedicated bags for grocery use only.
• Store bags in a cool, dry place and not in a hot car trunk.