With all eyes on presidential race, Council members push bag tax

For the first time in decades, New York is the center of attention in two contested presidential primaries. And our city is rightfully captivated.

After all, it’s empowering – candidates are finally talking about topics like criminal justice reform instead of fringe topics like ethanol subsidies that few of us in the five boroughs can relate to.

But you might want to put those feelings of empowerment on hold for a moment, because while politicos are fixated on Hillary, Bernie and Trump, our New York City Council is exploiting this moment to pass regressive legislation from the shadows.

Council members Margaret Chin and Brad Lander are wheeling and dealing to line up the votes to pass a 5 cent tax on paper and plastic bags. This regressive tax will unfairly hurt poor families in communities of color, particularly large families, while benefiting big-box retailers that pay poverty wages, and doing nothing to address environmental justice.

Polling shows that New Yorkers are overwhelmingly opposed to the tax, including 74 percent of blacks, 72 percent of Bronx residents, and 70 percent of households earning less than $50,000 per year. These groups are particularly opposed the tax because they’re struggling economically, and the new tax will only make their lives more difficult.

But with the presidential race in full swing, the average New Yorker won’t find out it’s even under consideration until it’s too late. Lander and Chin have indicated they’re seeking to pass it next week – only days after the presidential circus leaves town. Ironically, our great presidential debate is drowning out coverage of a local issue that will have real-world impact on people’s daily lives.

That’s a shame, because the bag tax debate is one that the forces of common sense would easily win. Earlier last week, the progressive city of Denver’s Office of Sustainability found that “A bag fee would, at best, make only a miniscule contribution towards the City’s 2020 Goal of reducing waste sent to landfills,” compared to alternative solutions. Denver has been at the forefront of progressive causes, particularly environmental issues, and we might learn from them if we stopped to listen.

We’re in for another few days of presidential candidates telling us that the future of the free world is in our hands. But when the average New Yorker wakes up on Wednesday morning, they might be in for a rude awakening.

Bertha Lewis is the president of The Black Institute.