There's a movement among a small group of Tennessee lawmakers to implement statewide regulations on single-use plastics after the Legislature passed a bill outlawing communities from regulating such items at a local level.
The ban on bans is expected to be signed this week by Gov. Bill Lee, according to the Associated Press, and would leave any decision on restrictions on auxiliary devices to state lawmakers. It also would ban local governments from taxing, restricting or regulating food or drink content.
"I intend to bring a bill forward next year that would have statewide application with the help, I hope, of some other groups that like this," Sen. Richard Briggs, R-Knoxville, said.
Briggs is "very much a retro guy," he said, adding that he doesn't like Facebook, television or "a lot of things." He would like life to "go back to the 1950s and 1960s," when he went through grocery stores and cups, straws, sacks and other items were made of paper, he said.
He has twice pledged to bring forward a statewide bill to help reduce plastic waste next year. A representative in his office confirmed he plans to follow through with the promise but doesn't yet have the details. He plans to get through this legislative session before researching the bill and figuring out the language and exactly what it will include, they said.
The move is considered a long shot and is not one that is expected to pass statewide, as some legislators believe the vote to strip cities of the ability to enact such bans was a signal of their disapproval with such actions.
However, it's an important step to keep the topic on the public's mind, even if it isn't going to pass next year, Sierra Club Tennessee Chapter Conservation Programs Coordinator Scott Banbury said.
The bill is being touted by supporters as one that will create easier-to-follow guidelines for local businesses. Bill sponsor Rep. Susan Lynn, R-Mount Juliet, has regularly claimed the point of the bill is to ensure there is not a "patchwork of very confusing" laws, but she has also lambasted states that have enacted restrictions to reduce pollution. She has called such bills an attack on freedom and an assault on small businesses, while arguing convenient, single-use plastics are a necessity because they are quick and easy.
Committee discussion on the bill often steered toward conversations about California and its decision to regulate plastic straws, calling such practices "nonsense."
However, the bill - which was backed by Republican lawmakers and supported largely along party lines - was quickly met by dissenting Democratic senators' rebukes. They claimed some of the bill's supporters were taking away local rights because they didn't agree with moves by the state's two biggest left-leaning cities: Memphis and Nashville, which have recently considered imposing a ban on plastic grocery bags.
"Are we making a principle stand that we want there to be one statewide standard, or are we indicating our preference on what that standard should be?" asked Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville.
Other representatives from Nashville and Memphis have criticized the bill since it was introduced in subcommittee, and that continued through to the House and Senate floor.
"Local government is elected to do a job when we try to take away those powers, it really leads us down a pathway I'm sure we would not want the federal government to lead us down," Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, said. "We have to be careful when we're trying to get in other people's kitchens and we don't know the recipe."
The bill passed the Senate on March 28 on a vote of 23-7. The House vote took place March 25 and the bill passed 69-21, following party lines with the exception of local Rep. Yusuf Hakeem, D-Chattanooga, who voted for the bill.
Hakeem believes the bill will be a good way to bring attention to plastic pollution and hopes to see a discussion take place statewide about the issue.
"I would think, in essence there needs to be more discussion in the communities in regards to plastics and its impact on the environment," Hakeem said. "The intent is to bring about more discussion. I think it gets people's attention when you talk about taking away who's in charge of such an issue."
Contact staff writer Mark Pace at mpace@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659. Follow him on Twitter @themarkpace and on Facebook at ChattanoogaOutdoorsTFP.