As a free and capable person, I can decide “paper or plastic” for myself. If I were of a bent to open a business in this city, I would want to be able to decide for myself what services to offer my customers. What I would not do is , as PCC seems to be advocating, deny my customers a service option and then attempt to use City Council to force competitors into the same position.
I reuse plastic bags for many things. The most common is as a litter bag on my neighborhood walks, where I gather up all kinds of wet, slimy trash, including, on one occasion, a discarded condom. I can use the waterproof bag as a shield for my hand and rid the sidewalk of such things with minimal risk to myself. I cannot do this with a paper bag, and I would not do it with a bag I was forced to pay for.