Did you hear the news this week that Montgomery County executive Isiah Leggett has proposed a 5-cent bag tax that would apply to nearly all retail establishments?  

It covers both paper and plastic bags, with the exception of bags used by pharmacists, at the farmers market, for take-out at a restaurant or for newspapers.

A similar, more limited tax is already collected in the District, but it is only in grocery stores and other establishments that sell food.  Isiah’s proposal would include "any supermarket, convenience store, shop, service station, restaurant or any other sales outlet where a customer purchases goods," according to the legislation language released this Monday.  The proposed law would go into effect in January 2012 but would first need to be passed by the County Council.  Tens of thousands of merchants would be included.

According to the North Potomac-Darnestown Patch, Leggett said the legislation would “encourage people to use reusable bags when shopping instead of plastic bags, which often end up in County streams.”

One cent of the tax would go to the retail establishment to help cover “administrative costs” and the remaining 4 cents would go to the county. The county estimates the tax would produce about $1.5 million in the first year, and the money would go into the Water Quality Protection Fund.

Reactions of consumers in Montgomery County appear to be mixed, as they were in DC.

According to The Washington Post, “although bag-tax efforts have been defeated elsewhere in the country and some opposed the effort in the District, Montgomery officials said they are confident that the idea of a bag tax will resonate in a community where environmental concerns run deep in the political culture.”

Georgette "Gigi" Godwin, president and chief executive of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce told the Post that "We support the concept.”

What do you think?  Would a similar tax be a good idea in Howard County? 

Pros:  reduce the volume of waste, great for the environment if it convinces people to bring their own bags, could raise a lot of money for the county, could be a step towards additional legislation to encourage consumers to make decisions that respect and protect the environment.

Cons:  more money out of our pockets, more burden on business owners, could be a step towards additional legislation…

You see where this is going. 

So far, the Howard County Office of Public Information is not aware of this kind of a bag tax being discussed in county government here.  Do you think it should be?