Gov. Andrew Cuomo has appointed his environmental conservation commissioner Basil Seggos and the chairmen of the state legislature’s conservation committees to find ways to reduce the environmental risks of plastic grocery bags.
Cuomo promised to create the Plastic Bag Task Force on Feb. 14, when he signed a bill halting New York City from implementing a nickel-a-bag fee until at least Sept. 28, 2018. He said the city-only law would have allowed merchants to collect a “windfall” of $100 million a year in fees but not solve what he said is a statewide problem (NYLJ, Feb. 16).
