TRENTON, N.J. – Your trips to the store and Friday night takeout experiences may never be the same. That’s because single-use plastic bags, restaurant paper carryout bags, and polystyrene food packaging are likely to be a thing of the past in New Jersey in the relatively near future.
On Thursday, the New Jersey legislature approved the bill which means Governor Phil Murphy has until November 9th to act on the legislation. The legislation also requires that plastic straws be made available only upon request.
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The bill cleared the Assembly 48-24 with 7 abstentions.
The Senate’s final passage tally was 26-12.
The bag and styrofoam regulations would not begin for 18 months from the date Murphy signed off the legislation.
Some New Jersey communities temporarily suspended their municipal bag bans during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a reactions which highlights one of the potential glaring problems with a blanket ban on single-use plastic bags.
