Bisbee to change disposable bag ordinance to duck budget hit

PHOENIX — Bisbee plans to avoid a possible big budget hit by making voluntary the city’s ordinance that now prohibits retailers from providing shoppers with disposable plastic bags.

The city council’s decision late Monday responds to state Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s recent conclusion that Bisbee’s ban violates an Arizona law barring local governments from imposing regulatory mandates on disposable bags.

“Regardless of policy arguments for why the bag ban exists, the city of Bisbee does not have the authority to ignore state law and reach its policy goal by illegally imposing regulatory mandates on private citizens and businesses,” Brnovich said in an email.

Bisbee faced losing state funds if it didn’t resolve the violation, and City Attorney Britt Hanson said the loss of $1.8 million of state-shared revenue “would be a death sentence for the city.”

Hanson said the revised ordinance will include a provision to reinstate the mandatory ban if a court rules it’s legal. He said the council hasn’t decided whether to go to court to seek such a ruling.

The southern Arizona city’s ordinance placed an outright ban on single-use plastic bags and mandated a fee of at least 5 cents for recyclable paper bags. Bisbee said it passed the ordinance to help control its waste management costs and to improve the look of the city.

Businesses that did not comply would have been fined as much as $500 per violation.

Brnovich’s office said the city would not violate state law if it enacted voluntary programs to encourage people to use recyclable bags. It also said businesses are not forced to use plastic bags.

A similar ordinance passed by Tempe also violated state law. A city councilwoman sued to overturn the ruling but the courts upheld it.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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