NY Gov. Cuomo, Lawmakers Reach Deal to Ban Plastic Bags

Friday, March 29, 2019 12:28 pm | < 1 Minute Read

Oranges and tomatoes for sale alongside a roll of plastic bags at a supermarket in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, March 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

Gov. Andrew Cuomo and fellow Democrats who control the state Legislature are poised to have New York join California as the only states to ban single-use plastic bags.

The statewide ban agreement would be part of the state budget that’s due by Monday. The ban wouldn’t take effect until next March. The plan also calls for allowing local governments the option to impose a 5-cent fee on paper bags.

Negotiations on other aspects of Cuomo’s proposed $175 billion spending plan are continuing Friday, with the Senate and Assembly expected to start passing budget bills Sunday.

Lawmakers have also agreed on a measure that would close two yet-to-be-determined state prisons. Cuomo announced last month he wanted to close three prisons because of the state’s declining inmate population.

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