Right around the start of the epidemic, my state (US, not California) banned plastic bags. In the early part of it, the ban was relaxed, probably because it was felt that plastic bags might be more sanitary. But then they disappeared again.
So I've gotten used to reusing the paper bags, which now cost a few cents.
It's not banned, but I rarely see people using them in Germany. I think it speak volumes about a countries culture when a ban is not even necessary for people to mostly stop using plastic bags. Almost everyone carries their tote bags.
Way back in 2001 when I was in Dresden for 6 months, they did not have free bags of any sort at the grocery store, it just wasn't the normal way there. We didn't know that the first time we went grocery shopping, and they had to scrounge up some old cardboard boxes for us to use to carry our groceries out. Everyone else knew to bring their own tote bags.
> they had to scrounge up some old cardboard boxes for us to use to carry our groceries out
Really not that out of the ordinary; Back then plenty of supermarkets still had "cardboard corners".
People who bought stuff in bulk could dispose of the boxes there, while people who forgot to bring a bag could take some boxes from the corner to carry their groceries.
They can still be found in discounters in the more lower income areas but have become noticeably rarer.
I think they're a scam. They cost orders of magnitude more than paper bags. There is hardly anything people like better than rationalizations for spending more rather than less to save the environment. Pull out the magic word "externalities", it can do anything!
So I've gotten used to reusing the paper bags, which now cost a few cents.
It's funny that you're still using plastic bags.