To: Cranston City Couneil From: Mayor Allan Fung RE: Veto of Ordinance 2-19-01 Date: April 1, 2019 J eertainly appreciate and respect the sponsors’ effort to encourage recycling and I believe that reducing plastics is a noble goal to help our environment. But Ordinance 2-19-01, which outright bans plastic carryout bags, presents some major concerns to many in our business ‘community. I have heard from restaurant owners, the hospitality association, our chamber of commerce, retailers, and our small and large markets, They all agree that a better way to address the situation is through policies that incentivize the use of reusable bags instead of methods that add more costs to them and the consumers. The business community has been part of a statewide plastics task force and provided appropriate input on the best way to address this situation, They have finally agreed to compromise legislation that was put forward by the state Department of Environmental ‘Management and supported by Senate President Ruggerio. This legislation would supersede the various local bag bans actoss numerous communities that is presenting businesses with implementation challenges and added costs. Because this compromise legislation is pending and has a chance to pass this session, my administration was urging that this ordinance would be shelved until the end of the legislative session, especially since it would be moot under the preemption language in the pending bill. For all these reasons, I respectfully veto Ordinance 2-19-01. Respectfully, ian W. Fung, Mayor