City leaders had been on track to restrict the distribution of single-use plastic bags in Davis until the state decided to try to beat it to the punch.

The Davis Natural Resources Commission drafted an ordinance in March that would force businesses, specifically grocery stores and other large retailers, to refrain from bagging their goods for customers in plastic.

But the City Council decided last week to wait to move forward with the ordinance while a similar bill makes its way through the Legislature.

Jacques DeBra, the city’s utilities manager, recommended that the council postpone its decision so that if the state passes the law, the city can align its own ordinance with what the state has handed down.

“Let the state legislation play out and as soon as we have clarity on what the state policy is, we come straight back to council and (advise) you of the state policy and seek direction of the process (from there),” DeBra said.

The Assembly bill (AB 298) by Julia Brownley D-Oak Park, would ban the distribution of single-use carryout bags by grocery, pharmacy and convenience stores starting in 2014. It also would require stores to establish an “at-store” recycling program that would give customers an opportunity to return clean plastic carryout bags by January 2013.

The ordinance that the NRC drafted earlier this year read much the same: It would apply only to large retailers — such as Nugget Markets, Safeway, SaveMart, Davis Food Co-op, Westlake Market, CVS/pharmacy, RiteAid and Target — and, like the state’s version, would impose a 10-cents-per-bag charge on all full-sized paper bags distributed by affected retailers. The Co-op does not use plastic bags.

In the proposed local ordinance, however, smaller stores that have gross annual sales of less than $2 million would be exempt.

But because the Legislature’s calendar for 2012 ends Friday, Davis leaders believe lawmakers won’t pass the law until they reconvene next year.

Councilman Lucas Frerichs, who works in the Legislature as a policy consultant on natural resource issues, said last week he also has his doubts.

“It was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee but it does not seem like there are enough votes to get it through the process this year. The legislative calendar ends on Aug 31,” Frerichs said last week. “It seems pretty solid that it’s not going to be enacted this year. “

NRC member Alan Pryor questioned then why city staff suggested waiting until the state makes a decision.

“This came in as a complete surprise,” Pryor told the council last week. “To request to delay any action whatsoever. And it certainly hasn’t been discussed within the NRC.

“I will note that staff has unilaterally ceased work on the (environmental impact report) which they had committed in March to complete and actually have an actionable item before the council in August. Obviously, that hasn’t happened.”

DeBra said, however, that the council had not given staff direction on moving forward with an EIR or the California Environmental Quality Act process.

“It’s not that we stopped, but we wanted to give the council time to be in a position to weigh in on the topic,” DeBra said Tuesday. “We got on the first agenda we could, which was (August) 21st.”

Regardless of what happens at the state level, DeBra will come back to the City Council on Sept. 11 to receive more direction. The council could decide to ask staff to pursue the environmental work it would take to move forward with the ordinance, but some members may not be ready.

“It feels a bit premature,” Mayor Pro Tem Dan Wolk said last week. “I think there has to be a lot more public input on this and also I think there may be other (additional) environmental initiatives that are worthy of staff’s, the council’s and the community’s time and attention.”

The council decided to ask the Natural Resources Commission to compile a list of its priorities as a commission to bring before the council at a later time.

Forty-nine agencies in California have adopted some form of local ordinance that reduces the use of plastic bags and encourages the use of reusable bags.

— Reach Tom Sakash at [email protected] or (530) 747-8057. Follow him on Twitter @TomSakash

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