LA County Prop 26 Hearing Continued Until March 23rd
The hearing on Hilex Poly's Lawsuit against LA County's plastic bag ordinance was continued to March 23rd. The case briefs are posted on the LA County litigation page.
Here's a great summary of the case from LA County's Opposition brief:
This lawsuit is a last ditch effort by the plastic industry to invalidate a Los Angeles County ordinance banning plastic bags from the unincorporated areas. Orchestrated by Hilex Poly, a large plastic bag manufacturer in South Carolina, Petitioners' contend that the subject ordinance is an unconstitutional tax measure under Proposition 26, premised upon the County's "deputizing" of retail stores as the County's tax collector. Petitioners hope to persuade the Court that one provision in the ordinance is an illegal tax on paper bags and as a result, the entire ordinance should be stricken. Ironically, Petitioners do not manufacture paper bags; rather, their motivation in the lawsuit is the hope that this Court will take the the extraordinary step of invalidating the entire ordinance including its provision banning plastic bags. If that happens, Petitioners return to selling plastic bags in the County's unincorporated areas, while the County, its taxpayers, and the environment, shoulder the burden resulting from the negative impacts of plastic bag litter. (p. 2)
Along with this tidbit - also from LA County's Opposition brief:
The Complaint for Writ of Mandate also names four "taxpayers," most of whom appear to make, sell or distribute plastic bags. Lee Schmeer and Salim Bana are employees of Hilex Poly. (p. 2, fn. 2)