Priorities, Priorities, Priorities — A Look Back on the Plastic Bag "Ban"
By Diego Garcia III | Editor of The Brownsville Beacon
In 2010, the Brownsville city government, in all their infinite wisdom, decided they wanted to be the first to do something. Instead of sitting down with the heads of all the city departments and prioritizing what it is we actually needed to make Brownsville a better place to live, we decided to focus on the scourge of Brownsville — the plastic bag.
Brownsville city leaders decided to ban the use of plastic bags. They decided these bags are a nuisance and they litter the landscape and make Brownsville less beautiful. Instead of directing the police department to crack down on people littering from their vehicles and instead of having the Code Enforcement department crack down on residences and businesses to make sure they had adequate methods of disposing of trash, they decided that stores could no longer use plastic bags. We were going to save the environment one trip to the grocery store at a time.
How very "Austin" of us.
Environmentalists applauded the empty gesture. Brownsville was so forward-thinking and were being proactive to try and save the environment and to prevent all that litter from making Brownsville so dirty. Forget about all those dumpsters with trash outside them. Forget about parents throwing dirty diapers in the Walmart parking lot. Forget all those lots with junk and abandoned cars and filthy couches. Forget about the people dumping old toilet bowls in alleys. It's all the plastic bag's fault. No more! The Brownsville city commission declared with one voice they would make Brownsville a safe green space by banning plastic bags!
Well...sort of.
You see, the ban on plastic bags really wasn't a ban. It actually ended up being more of a tax than a ban. At first, you could still use plastic bags — as long as you paid an "environmental" fee of one dollar. The fee would go to the city to fund "various projects."
The funny thing is, before the "ban," you could still choose between paper and plastic bags at stores like HEB. When the ban took effect, the paper bags mysteriously disappeared from HEB checkout counters. Thicker "reusable" plastic bags took the place of the paper bags. And you could use them — as long as you paid 25 cents for each bag. If you were a big spender, you could get the fancier fabric bags offered. Those could set you back as much as a couple of dollars.
Brownsville eventually adjusted to life without plastic bags. Some people took their reusable bags back to HEB when it was time to go grocery shopping. Others, like myself, just ate the quarter per bag charge and had a stack of hundreds of reusable plastic bags in the garage, while others wouldn't capitulate to the fee or couldn't be bothered to spend a quarter for each bag, so they'd wheel their cart of groceries out to their car and load each piece into the trunk without the use of any bags at all.
This was all a huge inconvenience to people. Brownsville might not be on the cutting edge of recycling, but we all recycle in our own way. Some of us have a drawer at home stuffed with plastic bags ready for use for just about anything, from small trashcan liners to emergency lunch bags. Convenience stores would let people walk out with their hands full of items — Stripes and Tiger Mart couldn't be bothered to order paper bags to make things a little more convenient for their customers.
Let's not forget Brownsville is home to one of the oldest paper bag manufacturing companies in the country. God forbid any of these convenience stores give the Duro Bag Company a call and order some paper bags for their customers.
Eventually the Texas State Attorney General's office stepped in and ruled the plastic bag ban was not enforceable. After eight years, plastic bags would start to make their way back into grocery stores, convenience stores, and other retail establishments.
But what about that fee that was initially charged? According to the Assistant City Manager, over four million dollars were collected in bag convenience fees. Arturo Rodriguez said the money went to several projects, "such as sanitation trucks, reusable bags, street sweepers." The fee also paid for something called a "trail master plan," curbside recycling projects, and the restoration of the duck pond on Barnard Street.
What sanitation trucks? I see the same rickety, old trucks servicing downtown when I drive through there at night. They didn't spend any money on garbage trucks. Our garbage is collected by a third-party company. The fee was collected and they bought reusable bags? That must have been one hell of an order with four million dollars to spend. I don't remember the city giving me, or any of my family, any reusable bags. And some of the money was used for a "trail master plan" and the duck pond?
Again, the city leadership fails Brownsville by spending money on things that we don't need to be spending money on. There are far better things to spend four million dollars on. What is a trail master plan, and how much money was spent on that?
Why do city leaders think hike and bike trails are more important than infrastructure improvements like making sure our streets don't flood when it rains? Why do city leaders think spending money on a master plan is more important than spending money on public safety improvements? Brownsville just bought three new Euro-style ambulances that are tight and cramped. The patient and one paramedic barely fit in the back of one of those things. It's just like when the city spent almost 100,000 dollars on a Humvee to use as a brush truck when the city could have had a standard brush truck for a fraction of the cost of the military-style truck? Who controls the checkbook over at city hall? Who decides where the money is spent?
Yes, parks and bike trails are important. Yes, the duck pond looks nice now. But those aren't things that the city needs — those are the things that city leaders want. There is a distinct difference between a want and a need. That is a lesson that is taught to school-aged children that seems to be lost on the people controlling the purse strings over at city hall.
Brownsville does not have an infinite budget. We have finite resources to try and improve Brownsville. We shouldn't be using them to pay for a master plan for anything. This is reminiscent of the time when the city paid five figures to an advertising firm to come up with a new logo for the city when I'm sure there were artists who would have not had a problem donating their time and artwork for free.
Our city leaders need to attend some sort of seminar that teaches them the basics of running a city. They also need to learn how to prioritize. Duck ponds and bike lanes are NOT what this city needs.
This is where you, the citizens of Brownsville, need to take action. Attend city commission meetings, email your commissioner, and hold them accountable. Tell them what your neighborhood needs. If you have a pothole in your neighborhood, ask them to fix it. If you have a street light out in your neighborhood, ask them to replace it. If you need more police presence in your neighborhood, ask for it. Don't sit on the sidelines and hope your elected official will do what's in your best interest. Be an advocate for your interests. Start a neighborhood organization and meet to discuss what your neighborhood's priorities are. Speak up. Act.
You can make Brownsville better. Demand better from your elected officials.
El que no habla, Dios no lo oye.
In 2010, the Brownsville city government, in all their infinite wisdom, decided they wanted to be the first to do something. Instead of sitting down with the heads of all the city departments and prioritizing what it is we actually needed to make Brownsville a better place to live, we decided to focus on the scourge of Brownsville — the plastic bag.
Brownsville city leaders decided to ban the use of plastic bags. They decided these bags are a nuisance and they litter the landscape and make Brownsville less beautiful. Instead of directing the police department to crack down on people littering from their vehicles and instead of having the Code Enforcement department crack down on residences and businesses to make sure they had adequate methods of disposing of trash, they decided that stores could no longer use plastic bags. We were going to save the environment one trip to the grocery store at a time.
How very "Austin" of us.
Environmentalists applauded the empty gesture. Brownsville was so forward-thinking and were being proactive to try and save the environment and to prevent all that litter from making Brownsville so dirty. Forget about all those dumpsters with trash outside them. Forget about parents throwing dirty diapers in the Walmart parking lot. Forget all those lots with junk and abandoned cars and filthy couches. Forget about the people dumping old toilet bowls in alleys. It's all the plastic bag's fault. No more! The Brownsville city commission declared with one voice they would make Brownsville a safe green space by banning plastic bags!
Well...sort of.
You see, the ban on plastic bags really wasn't a ban. It actually ended up being more of a tax than a ban. At first, you could still use plastic bags — as long as you paid an "environmental" fee of one dollar. The fee would go to the city to fund "various projects."
The funny thing is, before the "ban," you could still choose between paper and plastic bags at stores like HEB. When the ban took effect, the paper bags mysteriously disappeared from HEB checkout counters. Thicker "reusable" plastic bags took the place of the paper bags. And you could use them — as long as you paid 25 cents for each bag. If you were a big spender, you could get the fancier fabric bags offered. Those could set you back as much as a couple of dollars.
Brownsville eventually adjusted to life without plastic bags. Some people took their reusable bags back to HEB when it was time to go grocery shopping. Others, like myself, just ate the quarter per bag charge and had a stack of hundreds of reusable plastic bags in the garage, while others wouldn't capitulate to the fee or couldn't be bothered to spend a quarter for each bag, so they'd wheel their cart of groceries out to their car and load each piece into the trunk without the use of any bags at all.
This was all a huge inconvenience to people. Brownsville might not be on the cutting edge of recycling, but we all recycle in our own way. Some of us have a drawer at home stuffed with plastic bags ready for use for just about anything, from small trashcan liners to emergency lunch bags. Convenience stores would let people walk out with their hands full of items — Stripes and Tiger Mart couldn't be bothered to order paper bags to make things a little more convenient for their customers.
Let's not forget Brownsville is home to one of the oldest paper bag manufacturing companies in the country. God forbid any of these convenience stores give the Duro Bag Company a call and order some paper bags for their customers.
Eventually the Texas State Attorney General's office stepped in and ruled the plastic bag ban was not enforceable. After eight years, plastic bags would start to make their way back into grocery stores, convenience stores, and other retail establishments.
But what about that fee that was initially charged? According to the Assistant City Manager, over four million dollars were collected in bag convenience fees. Arturo Rodriguez said the money went to several projects, "such as sanitation trucks, reusable bags, street sweepers." The fee also paid for something called a "trail master plan," curbside recycling projects, and the restoration of the duck pond on Barnard Street.
What sanitation trucks? I see the same rickety, old trucks servicing downtown when I drive through there at night. They didn't spend any money on garbage trucks. Our garbage is collected by a third-party company. The fee was collected and they bought reusable bags? That must have been one hell of an order with four million dollars to spend. I don't remember the city giving me, or any of my family, any reusable bags. And some of the money was used for a "trail master plan" and the duck pond?
Again, the city leadership fails Brownsville by spending money on things that we don't need to be spending money on. There are far better things to spend four million dollars on. What is a trail master plan, and how much money was spent on that?
Why do city leaders think hike and bike trails are more important than infrastructure improvements like making sure our streets don't flood when it rains? Why do city leaders think spending money on a master plan is more important than spending money on public safety improvements? Brownsville just bought three new Euro-style ambulances that are tight and cramped. The patient and one paramedic barely fit in the back of one of those things. It's just like when the city spent almost 100,000 dollars on a Humvee to use as a brush truck when the city could have had a standard brush truck for a fraction of the cost of the military-style truck? Who controls the checkbook over at city hall? Who decides where the money is spent?
Yes, parks and bike trails are important. Yes, the duck pond looks nice now. But those aren't things that the city needs — those are the things that city leaders want. There is a distinct difference between a want and a need. That is a lesson that is taught to school-aged children that seems to be lost on the people controlling the purse strings over at city hall.
Brownsville does not have an infinite budget. We have finite resources to try and improve Brownsville. We shouldn't be using them to pay for a master plan for anything. This is reminiscent of the time when the city paid five figures to an advertising firm to come up with a new logo for the city when I'm sure there were artists who would have not had a problem donating their time and artwork for free.
Our city leaders need to attend some sort of seminar that teaches them the basics of running a city. They also need to learn how to prioritize. Duck ponds and bike lanes are NOT what this city needs.
This is where you, the citizens of Brownsville, need to take action. Attend city commission meetings, email your commissioner, and hold them accountable. Tell them what your neighborhood needs. If you have a pothole in your neighborhood, ask them to fix it. If you have a street light out in your neighborhood, ask them to replace it. If you need more police presence in your neighborhood, ask for it. Don't sit on the sidelines and hope your elected official will do what's in your best interest. Be an advocate for your interests. Start a neighborhood organization and meet to discuss what your neighborhood's priorities are. Speak up. Act.
You can make Brownsville better. Demand better from your elected officials.
El que no habla, Dios no lo oye.
It was never a ban, it was an ordinance, an environmental fee that went to the COB. Plastic bags were always available if you paid the 5 cent fee. Now they are available for free.
ReplyDeleteThat is inaccurate. It was never a five cent fee, it was a one dollar fee. And no, it didn't last the entire length of the ban. The city eventually stopped collecting the fee and the plastic bags went away so no, they weren't always available.
DeleteYes, you are correct, It was a $1 fee, 5 cents went to the business and 95 cents went to the city. What was I thinking? How much was collected? Who knows? What was done with the money, who knows? Sounds oddly like Tenaska and the ridiculously inflated PUB rates we paid and still pay. How much has been collected and what has become of the money? Who knows? We don't, that's for sure, but going back to the bag ban, it was never a plastic bag ban, you could pay for the privilege of using plastic bags. The ordinance was just another ploy to take hard earned cash from the good old taxpayers that never get any answers from the city commission. The bags were banned after the environmental fee was found to be illegal, but the bags have returned, so we are back where we started.
Delete