California finalizes plastic bag ban by 2026

October 20, 2025

That familiar choice at grocery checkout will disappear as the state of California takes bold action. On October 17, California Attorney General Rob Bonta revealed a landmark settlement with four large plastic-bag manufacturers, marking a major shift away from traditional carry-out bags in California.

Under the deal, the companies involved will cease selling their plastic grocery bags in California and pay a combined penalty of around $1.7 million. The settlement confirms that the firms violated state law by distributing non-recyclable plastic bags for years, and mandates that many of these bags be pulled from the market ahead of the already-scheduled statewide ban that kicks in January 1, 2026.

By doing so, California isn’t just enforcing rules—it’s sending a message: corporate practices that mislead consumers or damage the environment will be held accountable.

The legal action stems from California’s original anti-bag legislation, SB 270 (signed in 2014 under then-Governor Jerry Brown) and later upheld via statewide ballot measure Proposition 67 in 2016. That law prohibited the free distribution of typical single-use plastic bags in grocery and retail stores, while allowing “reusable” thicker plastic bags—provided they were genuinely recyclable in California. However, the state’s investigation found that the thicker bags were in fact not recyclable and still ended up in landfills, incinerators or in the natural environment.

Most grocery chains had already stopped offering standard single-use plastic bags; some, like Whole Foods Market and Trader Joe’s, now give out only paper bags or encourage reusable-bag use. But the new law, SB 1053, signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, closes the remaining loophole by prohibiting those thicker “reusable” plastic bags beginning January 1, 2026.

An ABC News investigation in 2023 tracked 46 bundles of plastic bags with electronic tags in store drop-off bins at major retailers. The results were stark: only four reached actual recycling centers. Many went to landfills, were incinerated, or simply stopped reporting. The findings highlight the gap between what manufacturers claimed (that their bags were recyclable) and what actually happens.

Environmental advocates welcomed the settlement. Nick Lapis of non-profit group Californians Against Waste said:

 “It doesn’t make sense for something you use for minutes to last for centuries. Plastic bags end up in the environment. They are eaten by marine mammals. They cause litter. They are so lightweight they float out of garbage trucks.”

Under the terms of the settlement, four producers—Revolution Sustainable Solutions, Metro Poly, PreZero US Packaging and Advance Polybag—have agreed to stop selling the thicker plastic bags in California and to collectively pay the penalty. Separately, the attorney general filed lawsuits against three other manufacturers—Novolex Holdings, Inteplast Group and Mettler Packaging—accusing them of violating California’s laws governing marketing claims, false advertising and unfair business practices.

The investigation asked 69 waste-processing and recycling facilities in California whether they accepted plastic bags for recycling. Only two said yes—and neither could verify that the bags were actually recycled. Attorney General Bonta emphasized:

“These bags are not recyclable at any meaningful scale anywhere in California. The only thing being recycled are the false claims of the manufacturers.”

Though the Jan 1, 2026 deadline approaches, some plastic bags will remain temporarily in use. Retail stores that do not sell food items may still distribute certain plastic bags, and very lightweight plastic bags used pre-checkout (for produce or bulk food) remain permitted under specific conditions. But from that date onward, grocery-store checkouts will essentially offer either recycled-paper bags (for purchase) or require reusable bags brought by the shopper.

Some critics—particularly Republican lawmakers and industry associations—call California’s layered regulations excessive and symptomatic of a “nanny-state” approach. Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher said the mandate “puts too many restrictions on what people can and can’t do. I don’t see a big need for it. Let people make the decisions they want to make.” In contrast, environmental and coastal-protection groups argue the regulation helps reduce litter and protects wildlife that can ingest or get entangled in plastic bags.

For example, during California’s annual Coastal Clean-Up Day in 2009, plastic grocery bags accounted for 8.7 % of all litter collected. Recently the figure has dropped to 1.6 %—evidence supporting the effectiveness of the laws.

“If anyone ever tells you plastic-bag bans don’t work, this proves them wrong,” remarked California Coastal Commission marine-debris program manager Eben Schwartz.