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Abbott Says Plastic Bag Bans Are Illegal

Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R)

  Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott says municipal bans on single-use plastic bags are illegal.

In a five-page attorney general's opinion Friday, the Republican gubernatorial nominee said a state law prohibits local governments from prohibiting, restricting or charging a fee, for solid waste management purposes, for "the use of a container or package in a manner not authorized by state law."

Abbott acknowledges that the law does not define a single-use plastic bag as a "container or package." However, he contends the bags fit the dictionary definitions of a container or package.

State Rep. Dan Flynn, a Dallas Republican, had sought the opinion after nine cities enacted ordinances banning the single-use bags. The opinion is non-binding but reflects the attorney general's view of who would win a lawsuit on the subject.

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