As NY gets set to ban plastic bags, Tennessee moves toward banning plastic bag bans

While lawmakers in the New York have come to an agreement to ban the use of plastic bags in the state, Tennessee is doing the exact opposite.

Tennessee’s lawmakers imposed a ban on local governments from regulating certain plastic bags and utensils — essentially a bag ban-ban.

It’s similar to the bag ban-ban former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker imposed on the state back in March 2016 — the same year California became the first and only state to ban plastic bags.

Environmental groups estimate New Yorkers go through 23 billion plast bags every year.

Its plan would, not only forbid retail stores from providing customers with a plastic bag, but also impose a $.05 fee on providing paper bags.

The plastic ban is part of the New York state budget bill that is expected to be passed in the coming days. New York will become the second state in the U.S. to outlaw plastic bags.

Some exceptions to the bag ban, the New York Times reports, includes “food takeout bags used by restaurants, bags used to wrap deli or meat counter products and bags for bulk items. Newspaper bags would also be exempted as would garment bags.”

Meanwhile, Tennessee’s Republican-led Senate followed the GOP-led House to approve a bag ban-ban. Republican Gov. Bill Lee is now expected to sign the law.

The state’s GOP is reacting to recent consideration proposals by Memphis and Nashville, the liberal-leaning — most populous cities in the state — to levy taxes against single-use plastic bags in order to cut down on waste.

Democratic Sen. Raumesh Akbari criticized the GOP majority for trying to override the decision-making of local governments.

Eleven other states have already enacted similar so-called “bag ban bans.”