PORTLAND, Maine — Plastic straws may soon be a thing of the past at restaurants and bars in Maine's largest city.
Portland city councilors are set to take a final vote on a proposed ban Monday.
If approved, businesses would only be able to give out plastic straws, stirrers or splash sticks if a customer specifically asks for one starting in April.
The products would then be banned entirely by January 2021.
The only exceptions would be for customers with disabilities or straws included in pre-packaged beverages.
If approved, Portland would be the first city in Maine to take such action in an effort to be more eco-friendly by cutting down on plastic waste.
Many restaurants in the city have already embraced the idea on their own by using reusable straws or products made of renewable resources like corn or bamboo.
Coffee by Design is one of those businesses.
"I think the city is taking a stand, but I think that giving a people a hard line -- sometimes you need to give business a chance to catch up," co-founder Mary Allen Lindemann said. "For us an extra nickel may not be much, but for somebody else it may be what puts them out of business."
Lindemann said customers have more than embraced their self-enforced ban.
The sale of reusable stainless steel straws has been hard to keep up with, according to Lindemann.
Councilors are scheduled to meet at 5:30 p.m.