To date, Ohio has four ordinances on the books addressing plastic pollution. The voice of the people has been heard loud and clear by local government and decision makers. Meanwhile, state legislators are ignoring their voices and working alongside with corporate lobbyists to remove the authority of local government. House Bill 242 is a carbon copy of preemption bills introduced by the oil, gas, and plastic industry. State legislators in Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Arizona, and Florida have already preempted plastic regulation on containers and plastic bags.
What can you do? Oppose statewide legislation that takes away the right of municipalities to improve their environment. Support local ordinances reducing waste in your community. Maintain a strong voice at the statewide level to challenge corporate lobbyist and big industry which threatens to silence local voices and action on the topic of plastic pollution. Commit to speaking out about preemption as a manipulation of the democratic process and an attempt to take power away from everyday people and communities trying to protect their local environment.
Want to be involved more? Contact Elissa Yoder Mann at elissa.yoder@sierraclub.org
Legislative Update on HB 242
House Bill 242: To amend sections 504.04, 715.013, 3736.01, and 3767.32 and to enact sections 301.30 and 3736.021 of the Revised Code to authorize the use of an auxiliary container for any purpose, to prohibit the imposition of a tax or fee on those containers, and to apply existing anti-littering law to those containers.
Link: https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/legislation-status?id=GA133-HB-242
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News article (most current as of May 29, 2019)
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‘Straw By Request’ Ordinance
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Plastic Legislation Toolkit by New York State: An Annalysis of the Impact of Single-Use Plastic Bags: https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/materials_minerals_pdf/dplasticbagreport2017.pdf
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Plastic & Climate: The Hidden Cost of a Plastic Planet by Center for International Environmental Law: https://www.ciel.org/plasticandclimate/
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Plastic Bag Law Activist Toolkit by Surfrider: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1csh2i4Q8Sk7DMrKTvna-PeHL-YnNZ4X_/view