MA AG Strikes Westborough 10 Cent Bag Fee

WESTBOROUGH, MA — If you've been charged a fee for shopping bags in Westborough, it's not because of the town.

The state attorney general's office in July struck down a new town bylaw creating a minimum 10-cent fee for shopping bags. In the ruling, Attorney General Maura Healey's office said the fee violates the state Home Rule Amendment.

The Home Rule Amendment "prohibits municipalities from enacting 'private or civil law governing civil relationships except as an incident to an exercise ... of an independent municipal power,'" Healey's ruling said.

In March, Town Meeting approved an article instituting the 10-cent fee on all single-use shopping bags, including paper bags. Retail and grocery stores would've been allowed to keep the fee under the bylaw. The fee was supposed to start on June 20.

That same article also redefined what "reusable checkout bag" means in Westborough. Under the current law, reusable bags can be made out of a variety of materials, including durable plastic like polyester. Healey's office allowed those provisions to stand.

Other communities in Massachusetts are moving away from allowing retailers to give out free bags — and some retailers have even started to charge for single-use paper bags. More than 100 cities and towns across the state have banned single-use plastic bags in some form, according to the Mass Green Network.

The state attorney general has struck down 10-cent fees in at least five other towns, including Lincoln, Mashpee and Buckland.