NY Plastic Bag Ban Will Be Enforced Oct. 19

NEW YORK CITY — A two-line note could signal the return of a ban that will keep millions of plastic bags out of New York shoppers’ hands.

Enforcement on the plastic bag ban will begin Oct. 19, an attorney for the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation wrote a judge last week.

The letter revives the ban that barred stores from using plastic bags after March 1 and charged consumers 5 cents for every paper bag used.

But the environmental measure didn’t last long. The coronavirus pandemic struck soon after the ban began and a lawsuit by plastic bag manufacturers prompted officials to pause enforcement.

The lawsuit in the state Supreme Court ultimately failed to halt the ban, prompting the state’s letter.