After the Texas Supreme Court ruling in City of Laredo v. Laredo Merchants Association (2018), Texas cities may not ban or charge fees on plastic checkout bags. Lubbock has no bag ordinance and grocers freely distribute single-use bags.
The 2018 Texas Supreme Court decision in Laredo Merchants struck down municipal plastic bag bans as preempted by Texas Health and Safety Code §361.0961, which forbids local rules adopted to prohibit or restrict, for solid waste management purposes, the sale or use of a container or package. The ruling invalidated bag ordinances in Austin, Brownsville, Fort Stockton, and Laredo. Lubbock never adopted a bag ban and now legally cannot. United Supermarkets, HEB, Market Street, and Walmart locations on Loop 289 distribute thin film polyethylene checkout bags without fee. Voluntary store-led recycling bins remain available.
There is no city bag offense. Litter from improperly disposed bags is enforced under general illegal-dumping and litter ordinances, not under any container fee scheme.
Lubbock, TX
Lubbock does not restrict expanded polystyrene foam takeout containers, cups, or coolers. The same Laredo Merchants preemption that blocks bag bans also make...
Lubbock, TX
Lubbock has no straw-on-request rule and no plastic straw ban. Restaurants may freely distribute plastic straws at every table or drive-thru window, in contr...
See how Lubbock's plastic bag rules rules stack up against other locations.
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