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Highland Park council asks staff to study single‑use bag fee after mixed council feedback
Summary
Highland Park staff presented options to charge a fee on single‑use carryout bags (paper and plastic) to reduce waste and fund sustainability programs; council signaled general interest in further study, recommending business outreach, exemptions for SNAP and small retailers, and consideration of pilot programs and fee levels.
Assistant City Manager Aaron Jason presented a staff report asking the Council to consider an incentive program — commonly described as a bag fee or plastic‑bag tax — aimed at reducing single‑use paper and plastic carryout bags and funding sustainability initiatives. He said staff had benchmarked nearby suburbs and recommended returning with a refined policy after business and resident engagement.
The proposal would cover both plastic and paper single‑use bags at the point of sale and would require retailers to collect the fee and remit it to the city. "We'd recommend starting a conversation at 10¢ per single use bag, paper or plastic," Aaron Jason said, and noted similar programs report annual municipal revenues in the neighborhood of $150,000. Jason walked the council through…
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