Reusable shopping bags lose in the battle with plastic bags, as California lawmakers failed to approve a measure banning single-use plastic grocery bags. According to USAToday.com, the Democratic bill failed on a 14-21 vote Tuesday.The Assembly Bill 1998 showed momentum, passing the Senate Rules Committee on Friday with several amendments. If it had moved to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's desk and was signed into law by Sept. 30, plastic bags would have been banned from supermarkets and large pharmacies beginning in 2012. Smaller grocers, convenience and liquor stores would have had to comply by 2013.The measure would have prohibited the distribution of single-use plastic bags at checkout while providing new incentives for consumers to bring their own reusable bags. The legislation was fueled by growing attention to discarded plastic's hazards: According to the environmental group Save the Bay, 1 million plastic bags enter San Francisco Bay each year, despite recycling and public education efforts.State officials report that Californians use 19 billion plastic bags each year, incurring a $25 million cost to haul the trash to landfills.Opponents of the bill said the ban went too far to regulate personal choice, ABC News reported.Communities across the state were waiting for the state to adopt a uniform, statewide ban on single-use bags before they adopt their own ordinances, Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, D-Santa Monica said in the USA Today report.This is a sad day for California, she said.
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