North Carolina has no statewide plastic bag ban or fee, and a former Outer Banks plastic bag ban was repealed in 2017, leaving most local bag regulation preempted in practice.
From 2010 to 2017 the coastal counties of Dare, Hyde, and Currituck operated under a statewide-mandated plastic bag ban for large retailers. The North Carolina General Assembly repealed that ban effective December 1, 2017. There is currently no statewide ban, fee, or mandate on single-use plastic carryout bags in North Carolina, and the state has not granted general authority to municipalities to impose plastic bag bans, leaving any local effort vulnerable to legal challenge. Retailers can voluntarily adopt reusable-bag programs.
There are no statewide penalties tied to plastic bag distribution; local ordinances attempting bans may be challenged as unauthorized.
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See how Cabarrus County's plastic bag rules rules stack up against other locations.
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