Georgia Senate votes to block plastic-bag bans

ATLANTA - The state Senate voted Thursday to prohibit cities such as Tybee Island and Athens from imposing their own local bans on plastic grocery bags.

Five Republicans joined Democrats in opposition, but the vote of 32-19 sent Senate Bill 139 to the House for consideration where a similar bill was introduced by the chairman of the House Agriculture & Consumer Affairs Committee.

The sponsor of the Senate measure, Sen. Tyler Harper, R-Ocilla, said he wanted to prevent a patchwork of different local rules to complicate business for grocery chains and others with multiple locations.

"We talk about being business friendly in our state, and we talk about making sure that we provide the right regulations for the businesses in our state and making sure that our businesses have level playing fields and that our businesses in our state have some sense of certainty in regards to regulation in our state," he said. "This is one of those pieces of legislation."

Harper said the effort was triggered by local governments in California that have a confusing array of varying regulations that he described as "regulatory mayhem." Grocery trade groups began pushing a prohibition against local bans here, in Texas and other states even before city officials in Tybee Island and Athens began publicly discussing outlawing the bags there.

Environmentalists say manufacture of the bags consumes petroleum that triggers pollution and that since the bags don't decompose, they wind up as litter. Scientists point to the bags as a killer of sea turtles who mistake them in the water for the jellyfish that are a mainstay of their diet.

"At the end of the day, I think we can all understand Tybee Island's interest in protecting their unique gem. It's a gem for all of us," said Sen. Elena Parent, D-Atlanta. "But I cannot understand the state's interest in protecting plastic bags."

At some point, the legislature could decide to impose a statewide ban on the bags, Harper said, but it shouldn't be just here and there.

HOW SOME VOTED:

N: Ben Watson, R-Savannah

N: Lester Jackson, D-Savannah

N: William Ligon, R-Brunswick

Y: Jack Hill, R-Reidsville

Y: Tyler Harper, R-Ocilla

Y: Tommie Williams, R-Lyons

N: Harold Jones, D-Augusta

Y: Jesse Stone, R-Waynesboro

Excused: Bill Jackson, R-Appling

Y: Bill Cowsert, R-Athens

Y: Frank Ginn, R-Danielsville