Plastic bags will be completely banned in Honolulu by 2020. Mayor Kirk Caldwell signed Bill 59 into law on July 23, which amends the city’s current bag ban by prohibiting retailers from providing reusable plastic shopping bags by 2020.

The forthcoming restriction is the latest high-profile development in the battle over whether to ban or allow plastic bags. The debate is relevant for the promotional products industry because single-use plastic bag bans can potentially fertilize local markets for more sales of branded reusable bags as both businesses and consumers seek replacements for the prohibited disposables.

In 2012, Honolulu passed a ban on single-use plastic checkout bags, which went into effect in 2015. However, the legislation allowed for retailers to provide reusable plastic checkout bags, those measuring at least 2.25 mils thick and that meet certain compostability standards. Under the new legislation, all plastic bags measuring 10 mils or fewer will be banned in Honolulu by 2020.

Honolulu, the state capital and Hawaii’s largest city, is located on the island of Oahu, the most populated island in the chain. In 2012, Honolulu was the last of Hawaii’s counties to pass a bag ban.

Under the amended legislation, from July 1, 2018 to January 1, 2020, non-exempt businesses will be required to charge customers a minimum of ¢15 per plastic bag for groceries and other merchandise, as long as it’s reusable and compostable. They can also sell recyclable paper bags that contain at least 40% post-consumer content.

After January 1, 2020, the thicker plastic bags will be banned completely, even if they’re labeled reusable and compostable.

“There’s no longer going to be plastic bags,” said Mayor Caldwell at the bill’s signing. “You’re going to have to come in with your own reusable bag just like the other counties [in Hawaii] have.”

Exceptions to the expanded ban include plastic bags provided by restaurants for prepared food, bakery goods, beverages and takeout; small produce bags at grocery stores; bags used to wrap frozen food; and bags used for pet waste, prescriptions and dry cleaning.

Brandon Elefante, the Honolulu City Council member who authored the bill, says that, while there have been no official discussions yet, the exceptions as well as polystyrene foam could be the next items on the chopping block.

Honolulu’s Environmental Services Department will enforce the new rules, which will impact an estimated 10,000 businesses. Non-compliance could mean a penalty fee of $1,000.

The debate about plastic bags continues across the country. Just after Mayor Caldwell’s signature last week, the Hilton Head Island Town Council in Hilton Head, SC, requested that a planning subcommittee evaluate a potential plastic bag ban. And in St. Petersburg, FL, the city’s environmental committee voted to have city staff put together an ordinance to be considered for a vote by the City Council.

Earlier in July, Pennsylvania governor Tom Wolfe vetoed a bill that would have prevented counties and municipalities in the Commonwealth from banning recyclable plastic bags at retail stores.

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