Mayor Tim Keller vetoed a recent city council decision to repeal the controversial ordinance, asking councilors to postpone any decisions until an ongoing study of the ban’s impact is completed.
Now, the council will have to decide whether or not to override that veto, and the odds are not in the mayor’s favor.
Earlier this month, six city councilors voted to repeal the ban – the same number it will take to override the veto.
Albuquerque City Councilor Brook Bassan has been leading the charge against the ban, arguing the city should not get to decide what kind of bags residents can use.
“We should allow people the choice for their priority, and what they need to do that best serves their needs, rather than us mandating and telling them what to do,” said Bassan.
But many residents believe councilors are missing the big picture.
“Plastic pollution is real, and ignoring the problem will not make it go away,” said Carol Chamberland, an Albuquerque resident.
Early data from the city’s Solid Waste Department shows only 10% of customers are using reusable bags, while 38% are not using any bags. Both councilors and residents agree the back-and-forth on enforcement severely limited the ban’s potential impact – but are split on how to move forward.
“We really just need to give it a chance, get used to it, get used to bringing our own bags to grocery stores,” said Ingrid Muller, Albuquerque resident.
“We need to have a middle ground, so we can’t be extreme and say ‘no plastics,’ we can’t be extreme and say only one thing or another,” Bassan said.
City councilors are expected to address Keller’s veto during next week’s meeting.
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