County Schedules Webinars Dedicated to Bag Law

To help residents and retailers , effective Jan. 1, 2012, Montgomery County has launched a new website with scheduled information sessions.

Under Montgomery County's carryout bag law, effective Jan. 1, 2012, all retail establishments in the county that provide customers a paper or plastic bag for purchases are required to charge 5 cents per bag.

Affected retail establishments include "all stores, permanent booths, service stations, grocery stores, department stores and other sellers," according to the Montgomery County website.

Exemptions from the bag law include:

• Bags used to hold prescription drugs

• "Initial use" bags, such as garbage bags, dry cleaning bags or newspaper bags

• Bags provided by an occasional retailer or by a seasonal event such as a street fair, farmer’s market or yard sale

• A paper bag that a restaurant gives a customer to take prepared or leftover food or drink

Informational webinars have been scheduled for the following dates to help residents and retailers understand the new law:

• Tuesday Oct. 11, 2 p.m.

• Tuesday Oct. 25, 10:30 a.m.

For more details on how to participate in the webinars and for a schedule of webinars in November through January, go to www.montgomerycountymd.gov/BAG.