Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) signed a law banning plastic bags from being sold at grocery stores, building on the state’s prior regulations of plastic bags.
Newsom signed a bill Sunday, alongside a slew of other pieces of legislation, that bans all forms of plastic bags available at checkout in state stores after a 2016 voter-passed ban on plastic bags still allowed consumers to buy a thick plastic bag for $0.10 each. The new legislation will take effect on Jan. 1, 2026, giving Californians more than a year to prepare for the change.
The legislation was spearheaded by Democratic state Sen. Catherine Blakespear and Democratic state Assemblywoman Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, who argued that plastic bags purchased after the 2016 ban were still polluting California’s environment.
“I thank Governor Newsom for signing this important legislation that will help protect California’s environment,” Blakespear said in a statement Sunday. “Instead of being asked ‘do you want paper or plastic’ at checkout, consumers will simply be asked if they want a paper bag if they haven’t brought a reusable bag.”
“This straightforward approach is easy to follow and will help dramatically reduce plastic bag pollution,” she added.
Bauer-Kahan said future generations “deserve a cleaner future for our communities” and touted the legislation as being able to achieve this goal.
“It’s time for us to get rid of these plastic bags and continue to move forward with a more pollution-free environment,” Bauer-Kahan said in a statement Sunday.
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The legislation will still allow Californians to get paper bags if they do not bring their own reusable bags to the store.
Eight states have banned single-use plastic bags from stores, with California becoming the first to enact the ban nationwide in 2016. San Francisco was the first city to ban them in 2007 when Newsom, who was mayor at the time, signed that legislation into city law.
