California governor Jerry Brown said yesterday he will approve a ban on single-use plastic bags, in what would make the western US state the first to outlaw them. Lawmakers passed the bill late last Friday, and it now only requires Brown´s signature to pass into law. The governor must do so before the end of September.
“I probably will sign it, yes,” Democratic veteran Brown said during a televised debate with his Republican election rival Neel Kashkari, who is trailing badly in opinion polls. “In fact, I´ll tell you why I´m going to sign it: there are about 50 cities with their own plastic bag ban, and that´s causing a lot of confusion,” he said, cited by the Los Angeles Times and other media. He added: “This is a compromise .. It´s taking into account the needs of the environment, and the needs of the economy and the needs of the grocers.”
