On Friday, Dec. 18, 2020, Gov. Jay Inslee issued a 30-day proclamation to postpone Washington’s statewide plastic bag ban as written in RCW 70a.530. Here are the most important things to know about this proclamation:
· The Department of Ecology supports this delay due to ongoing supply chain issues of the compliant paper and reusable plastic bags allowed under the new law. These issues are due, in part, to increased production demand for personal protective equipment in response to the pandemic.
· The 30-day delay proclamation becomes effective December 31, meaning the statewide bag ban will not go into effect until at least January 30, 2021.
· During the 30-day delay, the State legislature is expected to pass a formal amendment to the law so that it becomes effective June 30, 2021. This is expected to give manufacturers and distributors of compliant bags time to catch up to increased demand. Additional delay proclamations may be required.
· While the ban is delayed, Ecology will continue to provide education and outreach to help stores and customers make the switch to reusable bags and to understand the details of the statewide ban.
We appreciate your patience and flexibility during these changing conditions, and look forward to a near future free of pollution from single use plastic bags.
Learn more about Washington’s statewide, single-use plastic bag ban on Ecology's bag ban website. If you're interested in signing up for the statewide list serve for plastic bag ban implementation, go here.