State lawmakers propose fee, ban on checkout bags

Lawmakers in both chambers of the Hawaii Legislature want to charge a 10-cent fee for paper and plastic shopping bags, and four representatives are sponsoring a bill to ban the so-called single-use checkout bags altogether.

All of Hawaii’s counties already have their own bans on plastic shopping bags. But some of their ordinances have yet to take effect, and the proposals being considered at the state level would apply to paper bags, too.

Sen. Russell Ruderman (D, Puna) says the fee proposal is part of a worldwide movement toward reusable bags.