The Montgomery County Council has only done three things this century: raise taxes, drive business away from and out of the county, and ban stuff. You won't be surprised to hear that they are at it again, with another new law that will do all three. As a body that only copies legislation from other jurisdictions around the country, they're actually a bit late to the table on this one, but they're going to try and ban plastic bags. That goes for grocery stores, and restaurant takeout.
The ban also includes a new tax. There's already a tax on each bag you receive at a business. The deceptively-titled Bring Your Own Bag Bill will ban plastic bags altogether, and place a 10-cent tax on paper bags. They'll say you won't have to pay it, if you remember to bring your stained and germ-ridden reusable shopping bags with you. The press release falsely claims that the bill will create "a more sustainable future for the County," and "improve the effectiveness of the carryout bag tax law."
If you ask yourself - or anyone outside of the small world of the Montgomery County cartel - to name one thing the Council has done to improve the quality of life since 2000, good luck getting an answer. They haven't. They've just raised taxes, driven business away, and banned stuff. To be fair, they've also jacked up your health insurance premiums with the ambulance fee, and your auto insurance premiums by defunding the police, leading to skyrocketing auto theft and stolen auto parts. Heckuva job, Brownie!
The faces change, but the Council stays the same since the cartel seized control of it in 2002. Smug, arrogant, and corrupt, with delusions of innovation, while plagiarizing the dumbest legislation from Eugene, Oregon to Sacramento, California. Your taxes go up, and so do their salaries, just like Bell, California. They said a bag tax would save the environment, just like they claimed natural gas was the solution to global warming. Lies, all lies, that evaporated as quickly as the Council-mandated paper straw does in your iced coffee. Incompetence combined with autocratic power is a recipe for failure, which is all we've seen in Montgomery County this century.
But this is what a majority of Montgomery County voters continue to vote for, and they're getting exactly what they wanted. As the writer from another Maryland jurisdiction where voters don't have the heart to punish the elected officials who reliably fail them once wrote, “Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard.”
21 comments:
Don't forget the loss of 50% of affordable housing (including "naturally occurring affordable housing") across the county since 2000 and the continued bleeding of not only affordable but (in the county's BS marketing term) "attainable" housing.
Plastic bags are an abomination and so are leaf blowers, so even though I'm in favor of these "bans", it will cause problems and not be very popular to a certain demographic. At least Styrofoam is gone!
It's crazy how far behind Maryland and MoCo are when it comes to this issue. Most states with educated populations already have bans in effect.
Great post Robert! They don't care about you, me or anyone else and hate business as you point out. Yep. I think it was Hogan who commented when he was running for governor that the Dems in MD never met a tax they didn't like. You know what's crazy? I actually agree with the bag ban but not the tax which will never go away. Everything in our lives is plastic and that's not good for us or the planet. Given all that, why on earth do they seek to charge an when larger fee on paper bags? They're paper. Absolutely insane. They propose? It's a one party county. They can and will pass whatever they want and at the same time, impose their will on you because you're too dumb to know what's good for you so, good ole MoCo to your rescue. All this and people will pull the lever for every Dem candidate and wacko ballot initiative here in a few weeks just like every other election. Great job.
We get what we deserve, too bad it's the lowest common denominator..
It forces everyone to have to buy trash bags. I use the paper ones for paper recycling pick up. Now 10 C an bag, that's ridiculous.
I couldn't be more supportive of this bill. I always have to ask for paper bags at Giant, and they usually have a tough time finding them. Plastic bags are so horrible for the environment, because they are so light, they go airborne at the dump and end up in lakes/rivers/oceans. Everyone should use paper, 100%. Sign me up.
If the government required an environmental impact study before a new product entered the market, it would not taken a generation to realize that
we have a serious problem.
Correction Robert, the County Council has done four things since 2000. Last year they instituted rent control on existing housing (new construction is exempt for 23 years). Rent Control will guarantee the deterioration of existing housing stock.
People still need to take out the trash. Do you take it out a handful at a time? Or just toss lose garbage in a barrel to get all over the street when an animal knocks it over?
Ahhh, so the 'bag tax' comes full circle: if you remember DC was the first to institute the bag tax primarily because of the tremendous litter clogging the Anacostia River. Now, coincidentally nearby PG County is looking to fine retailers who don't secure their shopping baskets from congregating at apartments. What happened to personal responsibility? it's the bags, it's the shopping carts, its the guns! If MADD, for instance, blamed the cars would they have been one iota as effective? Next, we will be baming the now ubiquitous scooters for running red lights and the mayhem. We can't have anything nice.
Good to hear. Switched to reusable bags a couple of years ago and haven’t looked back. They are so much better because they’re stronger, hold way more stuff, and are more comfortable to carry. You can comfortably put in two reusable bags what would take 4 puny plastic bags.
Delaware manages without plastic bags just fine. Hockers gives everyone lightweight reusable grocery bags, and the shops at various boardwalks use paper. NBD, and much better for the environment.
No one is 'forcing' you to buy trash bags, try thinking outside the box and use twine. Learning yet?
I will sleep much better at night knowing that MoCo has saved the planet once this passes. Thank you to our overlords for knowing what's best!
A dozen states and several dozen countries get along just fine. People who cry and stomp their feet at ever increment of progress are exhausting.
10:24 has illustrated the real problem with government regulations. The elephant in the room is the 5-cent portion going to the government for whatever they say it will go to for now which will end up in the general fund contributing to Council vanity projects. Just another tax in the guise of a "feel good" solution which will have little to no impact.
So I'll have to put my plastic bottles of drinks like milk, juice, water, soda, my plastic bottle of laundry detergent, my plastic bags/cartons of lettuce and other salad items, my plastic bag of potatoes, my plastic-wrapped poultry and meat, plastic bag of seafood, etc. into paper or reusable bags because it will make a huge difference in the amount of plastic trash/waste? Hmm.
Speaking of the box, cat owner sure use plastic bags. I repurpose all my plastic bags. Sometime you need a water proof stuff holder.
9:33 - Such a great point.
Switch to detergent powder that comes in a cardboard box, like Tide, and you'll solve one of those problems. Liquid detergent is mostly water anyway, so you will also save money by using powder instead, and you will not have to buy it nearly as often.
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