[Adopted 5-28-2019[1]]
Plastic bags are often discarded into the environment, resulting
in waterway pollution, storm drainage issues, marine life endangerment,
and litter, which, in turn, creates economic and social burdens and
costs to Fairfield. The purpose of this article is to encourage the
use of reusable checkout bags to mitigate the adverse impacts of plastic
bag usage and to improve and maintain Fairfield's natural resources.
The following words, terms, and phrases, when used in this article,
shall have the following meanings:
A bag of any material, commonly plastic or paper, that is
provided to a customer at the point of sale to carry purchases out
of the retail establishment. The term shall not include:
Bags used by customers inside a retail establishment to:
Package bulk items, such as fruit, vegetables, nuts, grains,
candy, or small hardware items;
Contain or wrap frozen foods, meat, or fish, whether prepackaged
or not;
Contain or wrap flowers, potted plants, or other items where
dampness may be a problem;
Segregate food or merchandise that could damage or contaminate
other food or merchandise when placed together in a bag;
Contain unwrapped prepared foods or bakery goods; or
Contain pharmacy prescriptions.
Newspaper bags, door-hanger bags, or laundry/dry-cleaning bags.
Bags sold in packages containing multiple bags intended for
use as garbage, pet waste, or yard waste bags.
Bags of any type that customers bring to a retail establishment
for their own use.
A paper bag that:
Contains no old growth fiber;
Is 100% recyclable;
Contains a minimum of 40% post-consumer recycled content (except
that an eight-pound or smaller paper bag shall contain a minimum of
20% post-consumer recycled content); and
Conspicuously displays the phrase "reusable" and "recyclable"
on the outside of the bag and the percentage of post-consumer recycled
content.
Any person, corporation, partnership, business, or other
organization or group, however organized, that transfers merchandise,
goods, or materials, including, without limitation, clothing, food,
or personal items of any kind, directly to a customer in exchange
for payment. The term includes, by way of example and not limitation,
any grocery store, grocery delivery service, department store, clothing
store, hardware store, pharmacy, liquor store, restaurant, delicatessen,
convenience store, food truck, sidewalk vendor, farmers' market,
flea market, and any other retail store or vendor. The term shall
not include the sale of goods at yard sales, tag sales, or other sales
by residents at their home.
A bag with handles that is specifically designed and manufactured
for multiple reuse and that is made of 1) cloth, fiber, or other machine-washable
fabric, and/or 2) durable plastic that is at least 12.0 mils (thousandths
of an inch) thick. A reusable checkout bag shall not contain lead,
cadmium, or any other toxic material, as defined by applicable state
and federal standards and regulations for packaging or reusable bags.
A.
No retail establishment shall sell, provide, or distribute to customers or clients checkout bags made of plastic, unless such bags qualify as reusable checkout bags as defined in § 84-28.
B.
No retail establishment shall sell, provide, or distribute checkout bags to customers or clients made of paper unless they satisfy all of the conditions set forth in § 84-28 for recycled paper checkout bags.
C.
Nothing in this article shall prohibit a retail establishment from
encouraging and providing incentives or rebates to customers or clients
who bring their own checkout bags.
D.
Nothing in this article shall prohibit customers or clients from
using any bags or containers they choose to bring to a retail establishment
to carry out goods.
A.
The provisions of this article shall be enforced by a person or persons,
employed in the Fairfield Health Department, appointed by the Health
Director to perform such task.
B.
Upon determination that a violation of this article has occurred,
the retail establishment shall be liable for the following:
(1)
Upon the initial violation, written warning notice that a violation
of this article has occurred shall be issued to the retail establishment.
No monetary penalty shall be imposed for the initial violation;
(2)
For the second violation of this article, a monetary penalty of $150
shall be imposed; and
(3)
For the third and each subsequent violation of this article, a monetary
penalty of $250 shall be imposed.
C.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, no monetary penalty shall be imposed
for a second violation of this article if such violation has occurred
on or prior to the date that is 30 calendar days following receipt
by the retail establishment of a written warning notice of its initial
violation. Further, if multiple violations by a retail establishment
occur within a twenty-four-hour period, no more than one monetary
penalty shall be imposed for such violations.
D.
Payment of each monetary penalty imposed pursuant to this article
shall be made within 10 calendar days after the date of delivery of
notice of the violation.
E.
Any written notice to the retail establishment of a violation of
this article shall be delivered by hand or certified mail to the retail
establishment by a Health Department official or his/her designee.
A.
Right to appeal to a hearing officer. Any retail establishment in
receipt of a notice of violation under this article may contest the
liability before a citation hearing officer by making a written request
for a hearing within 10 calendar days of the date the notice of violation
was delivered to the retail establishment. Such request for a hearing
shall be delivered by hand or certified mail to the Health Department.
B.
Failure to appeal is an admission of liability. If a hearing is not requested, and if one or more monetary penalties are subsequently assessed, the failure to appeal shall be deemed an admission of liability and an assessment and judgment shall be entered against the retail establishment by the Superior Court as provided in Chapter 11, § 11-3. Such judgment may be issued without further notice.
C.
After an appeal has been submitted, no further notice of violation
shall be issued. Once a written request for a hearing has been received
by the Health Department, no additional notices of violation shall
be issued to the retail establishment until after the hearing procedure
concludes.
If any section, clause, sentence, or provision of the article
shall be adjudged by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid
or unenforceable, such adjudication shall not affect the validity
or enforceability of any other provision hereof, and the applicability
thereof to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
This article shall become effective as of 12:01 a.m. Eastern
standard time on February 1, 2020.
