The free paper and plastic shopping bags are now a thing of the past in Montgomery County, MD and may also be taxed in the rest of the state in the future.

Last Spring, the Montgomery County Council approved a 5-cent bag tax that went into effect Jan. 1,  2012.  The tax applies to paper and plastic bags at thousands of merchants including nearly all retail establishments, not just those that sell food.  Among the few exceptions are paper bags from restaurants and pharmacy bags holding prescription drugs.

So, how are you remembering to bring your shopping bags along when you leave the house?  Here are 4 tips:

1.  Make it fun!  As you can see from this picture, my friend Noel is having a little bit of fun with her new ‘wild fun’ bags.

2.  Keep your shopping bags in your car or at the front door and make it a family effort to remind one another to take your shopping bags when leaving the house.

3.  You may want to carry a larger purse, so that if you forget your bags while shopping, you can stow a few items in your purse.

I like the Big Budda Bag from HSN.com.  You can find it here:

Buy it now and pay it off over time with no fees or interest with Flex Pay at HSN – shop  electronics, jewelry, home and much more!

4.  Here’s a really interesting product that you can easily keep in your pocket.  It’s called the Reuseit Workhorse and it’s sold by reuseit.com.   It sells for $5.95 and you can find it here.  This is a replacement for plastic bags that folds into its own ultra-compact pouch attached inside the bag and opens to a full-size carrier that can hold over 25 lbs. Made from rip-stop nylon.  It comes in several colors, too.

Tagged as: bag tax, tax montgomery