Don’t ask for a plastic bag at grocery and convenience stores in Montgomery County. A new law banning them goes into effect Jan. 1.

The County Council passed the ban and County Executive Marc Elrich signed it into law earlier this year. It aims to limit the environmental impact of single-use plastic bags and prevent litter in the county’s waterways.

Here’s what you need to know about the ban.

1. Paper bags are an option if you forget your bag, but they will cost you 10 cents

Revenue from this tax will be split two ways: 5 cents will go to the retailer to help cover the cost of the bag and tax collection, and 5 cents will go back to the county. The county’s portion will go into the county’s Water Quality Protection Charge, which funds stream restoration and other conservation projects.

Council member Kate Stewart, who sponsored the legislation, said discussions with local retailers led to the decision to send 5 cents per bag back to them.

2. This law is a revamped version of a previous program that didn’t work

The county has been charging a 5-cent tax on both plastic and paper bags since 2012. But a 2023 Office of Legislative Oversight Report found the county did a poor job of collecting those taxes, and lost as much as $8.2 million.

“It was ineffective,” Stewart said. “There really wasn’t a good plan in place for outreach to our businesses.”

Stewart said the report prompted her to sponsor a new bag bill and brainstorm better ways to enforce the tax collection. One tweak: a county staff member assigned to focus on enforcement and distribution.

3. SNAP and WIC recipients are exempt from the tax

Stewart said the council didn’t want the law to burden low-income residents, so recipients of SNAP and WIC — federal nutrition programs — won’t be taxed if they use a paper bag.

4. In some cases, plastic bags will still be allowed

Grocers, for example, can still slip meat into a plastic bag and newspapers can be still be delivered in plastic bags. Pet waste, yard waste bags and dry cleaning bags are also permitted.

Restaurants can still give you a bag to take home leftovers or fast food drive-thru order — but it must be paper.

5. Need a reusable bag? The county will give you one for free

The county’s Department of Environmental Protection is distributing free reusable bags to county residents as part of their “Change Is In The Bag” campaign. Bags will be available to residents at all public Libraries, SNAP benefit offices, county Neighborhood Opportunity Network offices, Medicaid Outreach and Manna Foods.

You can request additional bag distributions at this link.