The Village of Northbrook intends to require retail stores of 3,000 square feet or larger to charge customers 10 cents for each single-use paper or plastic bag provided at the checkout counter. The tax is scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024 and is part of Northbrook’s larger sustainability plan.

The tax’s purpose is to encourage the use of reusable bags by having customers bring in their own bags, Village President Kathryn Ciesla said.

For stores planning to collect the tax, such as Lowe’s or Trader Joe’s, 5 cents goes to the store, and the other 5 cents goes to the Village of Northbrook.

Some unique situations do not require customers to pay the tax.

“If you go to a restaurant and you get carryout, there is no tax on that,” said Ciesla. “Or if you go to Walgreens or CVS and you get a prescription and they put it in a bag for you, that’s not a taxable bag.”

The Village Board intends to partner with local stores and organizations to distribute upwards of 10,000 reusable bags to help kick off the tax program.

“Our goal is to promote sustainability and change people’s habits,” Ciesla said.