The bag fee is a Colorado State law and is mandatory to charge customers who chose a plastic or paper carryout bag. Customers can avoid paying the fee by electing to not use a bag or by using their own reusable bag.

The fee is $0.25 per carryout bag. The PPRA requires that customer receipts show the number of carryout bags provided and the total amount charged for carryout bags. Retailers may not refund any part of the carryout bag fee. Retailers may not exempt any customer from any part of the carryout bag fee unless the customer presents at the time proof of participation in a federal or state food assistance program.

Businesses should utilize their POS system to document the number of carryout bags disbursed and fee collected each month. The fee will be remitted on the 20^th day of the following month as a separate item on the sales tax return at vail.munirevs.com. Businesses will populate the number of bags disbursed during the month and the fee will auto-calculate.

Please contact support@munirevs.com to open an amended sales tax return.

No, the bag fee is not taxable in Vail.

Reducing plastic and paper bag use will save money, energy, water, and trees—and protect Colorado’s rivers, soils, groundwater, wildlife, and livestock from plastic pollution.

Plastic bags are made from natural gas. They are one of the most common pollutants found in Colorado’s rivers, and never biodegrade—they only break down into smaller and smaller plastics and get into our water and soils, or are consumed by animals, ultimately ending up in the food we eat.

Paper bags require a lot of energy and water to produce. Manufacturing a paper bag takes about four times as much energy as it takes to make a plastic bag. A single paper bag requires one gallon of water to produce, while the mass production of paper bags is contributing to deforestation.

Municipalities will save money spent on costs associated with plastic bags, including litter cleanups and damage to recycling equipment. The law also directs funds from bag fees to be spent on recycling, composting, and waste diversion programs that will help provide valuable support for local sustainability programs.

The remaining 60% of the bag fee is retained by the business and may be used to implement the ordinance requirements, train staff on recording the fee, or purchase reusable bags for customers.

The Town of Vail utilizes their portion of the fee to support recycling, waste diversion programs and related outreach, and educational activities.

The state of Colorado defines a reusable bag as:

1. A bag that is designed and manufactured for at least one hundred twenty-five uses;
2. Can carry at least twenty-two pounds over a distance of one hundred seventy-five feet,
3. Has stitched handles; and
4. Is made of cloth, fiber, or other fabric or recycled materials such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

Carryout bag means a bag that is furnished to a customer at a store at the point of sale for use by the customer to transport or carry purchased items. Carryout bag does not include:

1. A bag made of paper when the paper has a basis weight of thirty pounds or less;
2. A bag that a pharmacy provides to a customer purchasing prescription medication;
3. A bag that a customer uses inside a store to:
   1. Package loose or bulk items, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, candy, or greeting cards; nails, bolts, screws, or other small hardware items; live insects, fish, crustaceans, mollusks, or other small species; and bulk seed, bulk livestock feed, or bulk pet feed;
   2. Contain or wrap frozen foods, meat, seafood, fish, flowers, potted plants, or other items that, if they were to come in contact with other items, could dampen or contaminate the other items;
   3. Contain unwrapped prepared foods or bakery goods;
   4. A laundry, dry cleaning, or garment bag.

There are a variety of options available for purchasing reusable bags in large quantities. Town of Vail encourages purchasing reusable bags that are manufactured in the United States when possible. Below are a few options based in the USA as well as a couple of other earth-friendly options.

• ChicoBag is a B Corp, Climate Neutral Certified, 1% for the Planet member, and Fair Labor Association member. Pricing for 10,000 polyester Original bags with a one-color logo starts at $4.25 per bag, and 10,000 rePETe Vita bags with a one-color logo starts at $6.59 per bag. Contact Sarah Jackson (sarah@chicobag.com) or call 530-717-2154 for more options.
• Holden: Reusable bags assembled in the USA ($1.48 or less for qty. 2500+)
• EnviroTote: Reusable bags made in the USA (variety of prices, sizes and materials from organic cotton, canvas, recycled PET, and more)
• Union Wear: Reusable bags made in the USA ($6.36 or less for qty. 1200+)
• Reusable bags made from recycled plastic ($1.00 or less for qty. 5000+)
• Reusable bags made from bamboo (approximately $2.17 or less for qty. 5000+)