The debate about plastic bags never seems to die. It just moves to a new venue.
The latest battleground on whether there should be a 10-cent fee on plastic and paper bags at the supermarket was a corner of the exhibition hall of the La Plata County Fairgrounds, where an anti-fee group collected signatures to get the issue on the ballot this fall.
Voters could then affirm or nullify a bag-fee ordinance that was approved by the City Council on Tuesday and is set to go into effect on March 1.
One petition signer, Bruce Spining, criticized the council for wasting time on the issue but thinks it should go before the voters “if it’s so important.”
Paul Bynum, who was collecting signatures, called the fee a tax and “a socialistic approach” to governing.
The anti-fee group must collect a minimum 344 signatures, or 10 percent of those who voted in the last election, to qualify for the ballot.
Their 30-day deadline is Sept. 6, but the city would prefer them to return the ballots by Aug. 23, so it could have time to get on the November ballot. Otherwise, the city might have to pay for another election in December, said City Clerk Amy Phillips.
Jordan Golson, an opponent of the fee, said the challenge won’t be qualifying for the ballot, but winning the election.
“We know the other side is just as passionate,” Golson said.
jhaug@durangoherald.com
