Welcome to the Laguna Beach webpage on the City’s Bag Reduction Ordinance

As of January 1, 2013, most retail establishments in Laguna Beach will be prohibited from providing customers with single-use plastic carryout bags at the point of the purchase. This includes any plastic bag less than 2.25 mil thick, including bio-based plastic bags made from plant sources such as corn. The ordinance adopted by the City Council will allow the continued use of plastic produce bags for the customer to carry fruits, vegetables, and meat and poultry items to the point-of sale. The ordinance does not apply to restaurants, take-out food establishments, or food vendors or food trucks at this time. The ordinance will also require grocery stores, drug stores, pharmacies, drug stores, liquor stores, gasoline station stores and convenience marts to provide only recycled paper bags or reusable bags to customers, and to charge a 10-cent cost-pass-through to the customer for each paper bag requested. The 10 cents will be retained by the store—this is not a tax, but an incentive to encourage shoppers to use reusable bags.

For more information, see our FAQ page. 

The goal of the Disposable Bag Reduction Ordinance is to eliminate the use of single-use bags in order to reduce marine debris and limit waste sent to the landfill.  Please call the City at (949) 497-0390 with questions about ordinance implementation and compliance.

Laguna Beach Ordinance Requirement by Store Type