A California lawmaker has revised a bill that would have eliminated tobacco sales over time and replaced it with a measure that will close a loophole in the state’s flavored tobacco ban.
In 2022, 63 percent of California voters supported Proposition 31, enacting Senate Bill 793, banning the sales of flavored tobacco. The state law prohibits retailers from selling menthol cigarettes, tobacco product flavor enhancers, flavored vape tanks, and other flavored cigarettes from stores and vending machines.
“Flavored tobacco products continue to be sold in many stores across the state,” Connolly said in a statement. “The existing loophole allows teenagers to continue accessing these dangerous products and undermines the intent of the law.”
The bill now heads to the Assembly’s Governmental Organization Committee and then to the Appropriations Committee. The state currently prohibits selling tobacco to anyone under 21, which would not be changed by the bill.
George Osborne, representing the bill’s co-sponsor the Union of American Physicians and Dentists Local 206, told legislators last week more enforcement is needed.
“We need to ensure that [the flavored tobacco ban is] being enforced properly, because as it stands, these lethal products are still falling into the hands of teenagers, which is inexcusable and unacceptable,” Osborne said.
According to an Assembly analysis of the bill, the state’s Department of Health would be authorized to penalize any firm, corporation, or person $400 to $600 for the first violation. The civil penalty would increase to $900 for a second violation, $1,200 to $1,800 for a third, up to $4,000 for a fourth, and up to $6,000 for a fifth violation.
Violators can also have their licenses suspended for 45 days for a third violation within a five-year period. The length of the suspension increases for a fourth violation, and the state can revoke a license for a fifth violation.
“Preventing the next generation of Californians from becoming addicted to smoking should be a priority for all of us who care about the public health of our state and the wellbeing of our children,” Connolly told Assembly Health Committee members before they voted to pass the legislation April 11.
Dr. John Maa, a general surgeon from San Francisco, agreed.
“Smoking is the leading cause of death for Americans,” Maa said. “The COVID pandemic has only highlighted further the urgency to encourage smoking cessation, as extensive research shows that smoking is linked to worse outcomes from COVID.”
The California Statewide Law Enforcement Association opposes Connolly’s bill, saying the restrictions could add to the demand for contraband products. California has the second-highest tobacco smuggling rate in the country, the association reported.
“That unmet demand leads to larger illegal markets, which in turn result in greater burdens on law enforcement,” the association said in a statement submitted to the health committee ahead of the vote.
Before filing the lawsuit, the companies gathered enough signatures to force a public vote on the ban, which was overwhelmingly approved by voters in November 2022. The lawsuit was then filed the day after Election Day—before the voting results were out—claiming the ban violated federal commerce clause in the U.S. Constitution by obstructing interstate trade. However, a judge ruled that the federal clause did not apply because the ban targets sales from not only out-of-state but also in-state manufacturers.
Connolly removed the phased tobacco ban from the original bill text last week due to a lack of support from fellow lawmakers and said he planned to bring it back again in 2024.
