This bill amends existing Washington law (RCW 70A.530.005, .010, .020, .030, .040, .050) to ban certain carryout bags and to create detailed requirements for paper and reusable carryout bags. It prohibits introducing or providing single-use plastic carryout bags, reusable film-plastic bags, and paper bags that do not meet specified recycled-content or nonwood renewable fiber requirements; compostable film bags must meet chapter 70A.455 RCW standards. Retailers must collect and retain a 20-cent pass-through charge on compliant paper carryout bags with a manufacturer's stated capacity of 882 cubic inches or greater, show the charge on receipts, and list and collect it when sales are taken through third-party ordering platforms. The bill treats the pass-through charge as a taxable retail sale and prohibits retail establishments from reimbursing or discounting that charge for customers, with specified exemptions for persons using certain state-administered vouchers or electronic benefits (WIC and Title 74 programs) and exemptions for food banks in the definition of “introduce.” The bill also sets product and labeling standards: compliant paper bags must contain at least 40 percent postconsumer recycled material and/or nonwood renewable fiber (wheat straw) and must display minimum percentages on the exterior; reusable bags must be machine washable or cleanable and demonstrate a minimum lifetime of 125 uses (defined as carrying at least 22 pounds 125 times over 175 feet). It preempts local carryout bag ordinances enacted as of April 1, 2020, allows the Department of Ecology (the department) to adopt rules, requires complaint-based enforcement with a department forum for complaints and outreach/education efforts, and establishes civil penalties—up to $250 per violation for retail establishments and escalating penalties for manufacturers or distributors ($2,000 first, $5,000 second, $10,000 third and subsequent violations), with each day of violation treated separately and penalties appealable to the pollution control hearings board. Legally, the bill modifies existing statute by adding prohibitions, product and labeling requirements, a new retail pass-through charge procedure, preemption of local ordinances, rulemaking and complaint-driven enforcement procedures, and specified civil penalties. Important text is missing or unclear in the extracted material: a portion of the compliant paper bag compostability timeline and related specifications is incomplete, the full contents of the amended RCW sections are not provided here, and there is an apparent inconsistency between a January 1, 2021 effective start date for certain prohibitions mentioned in the text and a stated act effective date of January 1, 2028; the document excerpts do not resolve this timing discrepancy.

If enacted, retailers and bag manufacturers would need to stop selling or giving certain plastic and noncompliant paper bags and instead provide only paper bags that meet new recycled-content or wheat-straw content thresholds or durable reusable bags that meet a 125‑use durability standard. Stores must charge customers 20 cents for each large compliant paper bag they hand out, keep that revenue, show the charge on receipts, and make third‑party ordering platforms display and collect the charge. Paper bags must show the percentage of recycled or wheat‑straw content on the outside, reusable bags must be machine washable or otherwise cleanable and meet the weight/distance durability test, and compostable film bags must meet existing compostable standards. The groups most affected are retail establishments (including temporary vendors and home delivery), manufacturers and distributors of bags, and third‑party ordering platforms. Retailers face new costs and tasks to source compliant bags, train staff, update receipts and platform listings, collect and retain the 20¢ pass‑through, and risk fines (up to $250 per violation for stores; much larger fines for bag makers). Manufacturers risk escalating penalties for noncompliant products. Low‑income customers using state assistance vouchers or EBT/WIC are generally exempt from paying the pass‑through charge. Key details are unclear from the provided text—most notably the effective date is inconsistently shown (January 1, 2021 in one place and January 1, 2028 in another) and the full compostability timelines and some amended enforcement provisions are not included.