RI lawmaker calls for statewide plastic bag ban

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) -- Plastic checkout bags would be banned throughout Rhode Island under legislation introduced Rhode Island’s General Assembly.

State Rep. Maria Cimini (sih-MEE’-nee) introduced the proposed ban on Tuesday. The Providence Democrat’s bill would prohibit retailers from handing out plastic bags, and would be the first state-enacted bag ban in the nation.

Last year Barrington became the first town in Rhode Island to impose a ban on plastic bags, joining cities like San Francisco, Westport, Conn., Seattle and Los Angeles. The bags are also prohibited throughout Hawaii because every county in that state has enacted a ban.

Environmental groups say bags are a major pollutant in Narragansett Bay and local waterways.