Special Notice: None
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Supervisor Dave Pine, District 1
Supervisor Carole Groom, District 2
Subject: Emergency Regulation Temporarily Suspending, Countywide, Any Requirement That Retail Establishments Charge for Recycled Paper Bags or Reusable Bags
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt Emergency Regulation 2020-003 of the County of San Mateo temporarily suspending, Countywide, any requirement that retail establishments charge for recycled paper bags or reusable bags.
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BACKGROUND:
As of May 20, 2020, the number of reported confirmed COVID-19 cases in California is 81,795 with 1687 in San Mateo County. The number of actual cases is almost certainly much higher, and will continue to increase.
Meanwhile, the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have been historically devastating. In the past eight weeks, more than 4 million workers in California, and 36 million workers nationwide, have filed first time claims for unemployment benefits, resulting in unemployment rates not seen since the depths of the Great Depression.
The County has not been spared these impacts, which are compounded by a residential rental market that ranks as one of the most expensive in the nation. Indeed, many of the County's renters are rent-burdened, paying over 30% of their income on rent, and some paying over 50% of their income on rent. This leaves less money available for other necessities, such as healthcare and food, and, for many County residents, little, if any money, to for additional charges or fees of any kind.
A. County and State Emergencies and Shelter-in-Place Orders
On March 3, 2020, pursuant to Section 101080 of the California Health and Safety Code, the San Mateo County Health Officer (the "Health Officer") declared a local health emergency throughout the County related to COVID-19. The Board of Supervisors (the "Board") ratified and extended this declaration of local health emergency...
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