A 10-cent fee per single-use plastic shopping bag at retail businesses in Oak Park businesses that was imposed eight years ago hasn’t made a dent in their use, village officials said, so they plan to ban the bags outright by 2030, with fees on their use increasing incrementally until then.
The Oak Park Village Board voted Aug. 25 to increase fees associated with single-use plastic and paper bags by 5 cents each year through 2029. Now 10 cents, bags will cost users 15 cents each starting Jan. 1. Plastic bags will be banned altogether in Oak Park in 2030, while single-use paper bags will cost users 25 cents each.
People using SNAP, LINK, WIC or any other food assistance programs are exempt from the fee, officials said.
The board voted 6-1 to approve the measure, with Trustee Cory Wesley the lone vote against.
Lindsey Roland Nieratka, the village’s chief sustainability officer, said approximately $170,000 is generated annually from the current 10 cent bag fee, and over $1.16 million has been generated since the bag fee ordinance went into effect in 2018.
While the fee on bags has increased revenue for the village, it has not been successful in decreasing use of the bags in Oak Park’s retail establishments, she said.
She said the higher fees are hoped to decrease plastic and paper bag use, along with its associated waste and environmental impact.
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Another way to encourage people to stop using the plastic and paper bags is a possible tote bag giveaway location that would be available 24 hours. Bags currently are available at Village Hall, but it closes at 5 p.m. most days. Officials also plan to promote reusable bags through a marketing campaign.
Wesley’s opposition stemmed from his contention that it takes several uses of paper and canvas bags to offset the environmental impact of one plastic bag and said he feels by going forward with the motion is them “doing it backwards.”
He also said it’s the wrong time to increase fees by any amount as some are struggling with cost of living concerns and grocery prices already.
“When I think about even adding a nickel to a plastic bag, it’s not so much the cost, but the signal,” Wesley said. “This signals to me that we’re tone deaf to the struggles people on the street are experiencing and I’d like to not send that message.
“It’s the perception that we don’t care people are struggling and that for some people even a nickel might feel like too much.”
Trustee Derek Eder said that people will forget to use their own bags and questioned potential backlash when the ban on plastic bags takes effect. He suggested biodegradable or compostable plastic bags might be an option.
Roland Nieratka said the gradual increase in bag fees was put in place as a way to shift peoples’ habits.
“That gives an opportunity for a little bit of a more pain point every year as people get used to it and it also gives us three years to do the education, the outreach, communication and help make that behavior change stick,” she said.
The three year timeframe also gives officials time to consider alternatives should they want to back away from an outright ban on plastic bags.
“I think that we should give people an easy path to do the right thing,” Eder said.