Plastic Bags to Be Banned in New York; Second Statewide Ban, After California

The ban also marks an evolution for Mr. Cuomo, a third-term Democrat, who in 2017 signed a bill that effectively killed a New York City law that would have imposed a 5-cent fee on plastic bags. The New York City fee had also been opposed by some in the State Assembly, which has been dominated by Democrats, who worried that the fee would act as a regressive tax on poor consumers.

As outlined, however, the plan to allow counties to avoid fees on paper bags would seemingly address those concerns. But that provision also left some environmental advocates disappointed; they argue that by not mandating a paper-bag fee, many people will simply use paper bags instead of reusable bags.

Peter Iwanowicz, the executive director of Environmental Advocates of New York, said the provision to make paper-bag fees optional made the proposed plan “a weak response to the scourge of disposable bags.”

“New York had a chance to show real leadership and came up short,” he said.

The agreement was also being criticized by business and trade groups, including the Food Industry Alliance of New York State, which represents grocery stores, a major target of such bans and fees.

Mike Durant, the group’s president, said the proposed law would “have a drastic impact on retailers,” and predicted confusion because of the opt-in provision. Mr. Durant also criticized the allocation of paper-bag fee revenue to the environmental and bag funds.

“The failure to give even a portion of the 5-cent fee back to the stores, makes this an untenable mandate for many of our members who operate within finite profit margins,” said Mr. Durant. He added, “We are disappointed that the Legislature did not consider this alternative and failed to hear the concerns of the business community.”

Small business groups also expressed concern. “Every mandated cost increase adds up,” said Greg Biryla, the New York director of National Federation of Independent Business. “Independent businesses are simply not able to absorb and adjust to new mandated costs the same as their big-box competitors.”