The committee chaired by Sen. Maria Frica T. Pangelinan, D-Saipan, said although they agree with the concept of House Bill 16-166 that Rep. Rosemond B. Santos sponsored, they find that it creates additional costs and regulations for the CNMI government, businesses and consumers.
“Businesses are already trying to function with fewer employees and lower revenues. The additional regulations imposed by H.B. 16-166…in its current form would come at a difficult time and place an undue burden on already financially challenged operations,” the committee said.
Based on the panel’s research, consumers and businesses are already paying for shopping bags at $0.02 and $0.05 for each disposable plastic bag they use.
H.B. 16-166 essentially seeks to require stores to encourage the use of reusable checkout bag made of recycled paper or compostable plastic not less that 2.5-mm thick.
Stores that will promote reusable checkout bags are entitled to receive a tax credit of 10 cents per customer.
The Department of Finance and the Division of Environmental Quality will be mandated to monitor the use of reusable bags if the measure is enacted into law.
But the panel said this provision will further burden the two agencies.
“Irrespective of the fees and taxes envisioned by H.B. 16-166, HS1, these departments will likely spend more on personnel and operations because of the additional requirements of administration and enforcement than will be realized by the provisions of the bill. This is an untimely impact on already declining revenues,” the Senate committee report on the bill states.
In its findings, H.B. 16-166 said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency noted that over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps are consumed in the U.S. annually.
The Wall Street Journal reported that 100 billion shopping bags costing $4 billion annually are consumed in the U.S.
The plastic products that end up in the oceans are also blamed for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other marine mammals that ate them.
Santos, R-Saipan, said her legislation aims to assist other nations in reversing global warming and greenhouse effects that threaten to harm the environment and the future of the earth’s present and future inhabitants.
The Senate panel said people should have a choice to use reusable bags especially in a community like the Northern Marianas where most people are transient with the tourism industry as the backbone of its economy.
“There will always be people who show up at the store and do not have a bag. They should have the choice of obtaining disposable or reusable bags. This is especially important as many customers are tourists,” it said.
“Tourists may not want to purchase a reusable bag only to lose their investment because of not wanting or being able to carry it home. A different tourist may want to bring the reusable bag home for use in their own community,” it added.
