A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to require certain retailers in the state to implement a program to recycle the plastic bags provided to customers, as recommended by the environmental review commission.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 130A‑309.10(c) reads as rewritten:
"(c)	(1)	No plastic bag shall be provided at any retail outlet to any retail customer to use for the purpose of carrying items purchased by that customer unless the bag is composed of material that is recyclable.
(2)	It is the goal of the State that at least seventy‑five percent (75%) of the plastic bags provided at retail outlets in the State to retail customers for carrying items purchased by the customer be recycled.
(3)	A retailer that (i) owns or controls more than 10,000 square feet of retail space in the State, and (ii) provides retail customers plastic bags for carrying items purchased shall:
a.	Implement a plastic bag collection program that facilitates the return and recycling of plastic bags provided to customers by that retailer.
b.	Provide a clearly marked receptacle for the collection of plastic bags that is in a convenient location at each retail outlet owned or controlled by the retailer.
c.	Arrange for the pickup, transport, and recycling of plastic bags deposited in the collection receptacles provided."
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective 1 January 2009.