Md., Va. considering taxing bags

Democratic lawmakers in Maryland and Virginia will propose statewide taxes on plastic grocery bags in coming weeks, looking to the District as a model of effective legislation. In Maryland, the tax would be 5 cents per bag, according to state Del. Al Carr, D-Montgomery. In Virginia, it would be 20 cents, according to the Richmond Times Dispatch. Revenue would go, in part, toward efforts to clean up the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed.

Bag tax proposals failed in both states in the past two legislative sessions, suffocated by fierce opposition from retailers and the plastic-bag industry.