Bill Text: IL HR1139 | 2015-2016 | 99th General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Declares the first Friday of May 2016 as "Thin Film Friday".

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2016-05-24 - Resolution Adopted [HR1139 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2015-HR1139-Introduced.html

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HR1139 LRB099 21332 MST 47124 r
HOUSE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Paper and plastic disposable bags are distributed
extensively throughout our society and are typically disposed
of after their initial use; and
WHEREAS, The rate of recycling of paper and plastic
disposable bags is extremely low, accounting for only 1-3% of
plastic bags and only 13-15% of paper bags; and
WHEREAS, Paper and plastic disposable bags consume
valuable natural resources in their production, increase waste
generation, and contribute to litter; and
WHEREAS, The impact of single-use retail plastic and paper
bags imposes a high cost on citizens in terms of recycling,
landfill space, sewer cleanup costs, and environmental damage;
and
WHEREAS, One million birds and 100,000 mammals are killed
annually from plastic in our environment; and
WHEREAS, Improper disposal results in plastic bags
becoming windblown through our streets and parks, clogging our
storm drains and sewers and degrading our soils and waterways;
and

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WHEREAS, Those plastic bags that are blown or washed into
our waterways may threaten the lives of avian and marine
species through entanglement, choking, and toxicity; and
WHEREAS, Plastic bags, when landfilled, do not biodegrade
and remain intact for many decades; those that remain in the
environment photo-degrade into very small particles that may be
consumed by wildlife, diminishing and contaminating a part of
our food chain; and
WHEREAS, Locally, plastic bags must be screened out of yard
waste collections; they contaminate food scrap composting
facilities and have jammed the mechanical parts of recycling
balers and sewage treatment systems; and
WHEREAS, Single use plastics such as Styrofoam, clamshell
containers, and plastic bags, are unsustainable products,
manufactured from petroleum and natural gas; the energy used in
the production and transportation of plastic bags results in
unnecessary natural resource consumption and increased
greenhouse gas emissions; and
WHEREAS, The impacts of plastic bag use and pollution have
ignited a global movement to dramatically reduce the amount of
disposable plastic bags distributed; and

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WHEREAS, There are successful plastic bag recycling
programs that exist throughout the country; and
WHEREAS, Convenient locations for the collection of
plastic bags to be recycled needs to be established; and
WHEREAS, Retail store employee awareness initiatives to
reduce wasteful bagging practices needs to be increased; and
WHEREAS, A program needs to be established in order to
promote the recycling of plastic and paper bags and the use of
reusable bags; and
WHEREAS, A unified and coordinated
education/advocacy/recycling program of this nature will
reflect a meaningful and positive step forward towards reducing
litter and plastic bag waste; and
WHEREAS, Many states have successfully enacted ordinances
banning or restricting the use of plastic bags; and
WHEREAS, These measures will help educate schools that need
to know about recycling waste; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE

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NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
declare the first Friday of May 2016 as "Thin Film Friday"; and
be it further
RESOLVED, That "Thin Film Friday" is established in the
State of Illinois as an effort to reclaim used thin-film
plastic bags and to encourage consumers to use reusable bags.