Plastic Bag Tax Passed By Fairfax County Supervisors

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — A disposable plastic bag tax will be implemented in 2022 after approval from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Tuesday.

The board voted 9-1 for a 5-cent tax on disposable plastic bags sold at grocery stores, convenience stores, and drug stores. The tax will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2022.

Authority for localities to implement a plastic bag tax came under 2020 state legislation. The Virginia Department of Tax Administration shared final guidelines for plastic bag tax ordinances on Sept. 1. Under the state guidelines, a locality must make the effective date the first day of a calendar year. Adoption must happen three months before the tax effective date for review by the tax commissioner.

Braddock District Supervisor James Walkinshaw introduced the plastic bags tax proposal as a board matter with Chairman Jeff McKay and Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck in July. The intent of the tax is to discourage use of single-use disposable plastic bags and reduce plastic bag pollution in local bodies of water.

"Plastic bags are one of the most common items found during community cleanups of our parks, streams, and lakes," said Walkinshaw in a statement. "They damage aquatic ecosystems and the micro-particles of plastics created when they break down make their way into our water sources. Plastic bag taxes are proven in jurisdictions across the nation. This measure will reduce plastic pollution and the modest funds collected will be reinvested into litter prevention and to providing reusable bags for low-income community members."

Storck, the chairman of the Board of Supervisors Environmental Committee, added in a statement, "These bags clog up our waterways and threaten the health and life of our wildlife. Plastics are forever, they don’t break down like other, natural materials and therefore their environmental impact is substantial. This tax will help to curb the use of disposable plastic bags in our community."

The tax will be administered through the Virginia Department of Taxation, with revenue provided to Fairfax County monthly. To aid retailers with the transition, retailers will retain two cents from the tax on each disposable plastic bag through Dec. 31, 2022. After that date, retailers will retain one cent from the tax on each bag. The county will receive revenue after the deductions for retailers and costs for Virginia Department of Taxation to administer the tax.

Revenue can be used for environmental cleanup programs, pollution and litter mitigation programs, educational programs on environmental waste reduction, and to purchase reusable bags for recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) benefits.

The tax will be applied to in-store, to-go, delivery and curbside pick-up purchases at grocery stores, convenience stores, and drug stores. The state legislation exempts certain things from the tax: durable plastic bags designed for reuse; plastic bags to wrap ice cream, meat, fish, poultry, produce, unwrapped bulk food items, or perishable food items to avoid damage or contamination; plastic bags for dry cleaning or prescriptions; and multiple plastic bags sold in packages for use as garbage, pet waste, or leaf removal bags.