New Tourist Tax

Welcome tourists to the beautiful Outer Banks. Before you arrive, let me update you on a new tourist tax our Legislative Representative Marc Basnight has gotten through the Senate and is currently in the House for vote. Grocery store bags. Yep, you will be taxed anywhere from .20 to .50 cents PER BAG!!!!! That would be at Walmart, the grocery store and any of a number of other stores that meet some preset defination.

So, beware of yet one more hidden tourist tax. He%26#39;s assuming you won%26#39;t even notice it on the bill. Bring your own bags and outsmart him at his latest tax and spend project.

New Tourist Tax

Thanks for that head%26#39;s up! I%26#39;m putting grocery bags on my list of items to take with us in July!

New Tourist Tax

I don%26#39;t know how that%26#39;ll work. It%26#39;ll be extra work and time on the cashier and the long lines to be asked do you need a bag. Time. Because if you do that%26#39;ll be $ extra. Think and talk a little about why and how and well, next time I%26#39;m bringing my own...amazing how much time backup occurs over a simple thing.

I have seen some stores elsewhere that are selling the eco friendly bags one brings every shopping trip. I guess the stores would get into that bigger time.

How about who bags? Is there a switch off if the bag is the customer%26#39;s and not the store%26#39;s? Or if the bagger bags all bags who is held responsible for a tear in the bag where an item falls out and breaks. It%26#39;s always been the store%26#39;s responsibiblity...free replacement if something falls out of the faulty bag, even if something falls out of the cart because it%26#39;s assumed that the bagger didn%26#39;t load properly. Would the store take on that responsibility if the shopper has used his/her own bag? Maybe not, so then the store would stop bagging bags brought by shoppers.

When is the next vote?

Me thinks you are trying to cause a problem or you are not aware of the facts. Basnight tried to do that, but it did not go through so now they are outlawing those plastic grocery bags next year. To call that proposed tax something like a tourist tax is totally misleading since I, as a local here, would pay it as well as those visiting here.

Ah, I see what you%26#39;re saying about basnight and happy travler now and agree. I note that Happy Travler has only posted once.

Personally, I%26#39;m all for eco stuff but I think congress would find too many ifs ands and buts to easily pass it.

What about that speeding fine in Va.? They tried that high rate a few times. Didn%26#39;t go over well.

Well, thanks a bunch, pal! I shared that info with some other folks I know coming to OBX this summer and now I%26#39;ve got to recant! Great! Guess I should have looked to see how many posts before I believed this post. Oh well, next time I%26#39;ll wait to hear from other locals first!

Melb, looks like happytravler is a local. Thought I%26#39;d get a tiny bit more to the bottom of this. Maybe we shouldn%26#39;t be so hard on the guy afterall. While TA only shows number of forum posts on its forums (hence 1 for Happytravler1) he has posted two reviews. Pix too of Coz and Cancun too a few years ago.

Let me squeeze in here that our family loves and enjoys many beaches - different ones for different needs/groups/moments in time. VB is wonderful and close for us. OBX is dreamy and usually where our group winds up for reunions. etc. etc.

So now I%26#39;m reading an article from the Pilot (Hampton Roads) on this topic.

It says the test version of the bill would ban any plastic bags at all at large retail stores in Dare, Hyde and Currituck counties.

So recycled paper would be permitted. I don%26#39;t know if everyone is quoting a different price, but this article says Basnight proposes charging 10-25 cents a bag.

This would only apply to businesses larger than 5,000 sq. feet or those that are part of a retail chain with five or more store in the state.

Interestingly, Harris Teeter and Food Lion in the Outer Banks already offers the 100% recycled paper bags as an option without charging extra.

This is very interesting. NC would be the first state then to actually outlaw these bags...San Fran banned them but it wasn%26#39;t a law it seems.

I%26#39;m all for ecology but also one needs to be practical in making a transition. I can%26#39;t wait to hear the results from the House.

Washington, D.C. is trying to put this through as well.

http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=596%26amp;sid=1677799

And calling it a tourist tax is not accurate-it affects everyone.

These taxes are being put into place to discourage use of plastic bags which are very dangerous to the environment. If it is the right way to do it-I have no idea.

There%26#39;s similar legislation being considered here. I am all for it if it will stop the endless use of plastic bags. As others have noted, this legislation has nothing to do with a tourist tax.

We shouldn%26#39;t be using plastic bags. I switched to the eco bags for the grocery and for other purposes. Always carry a couple of cloth bags that can be folded into a tight ball in my handbag to use when I am out and run into a store for a few things. Just say no to plastic!

MB

I recall that the reason it was being started on the coast was not to affect the tourist, but because in addition to using petroleum, the bags were a real problem because they were getting into the rivers/ocean and causing a huge problem. See here for more info: www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi…

I%26#39;m not seeing where reports are actually calling it a tourist tax. Are they really?