Dive Brief:
- Maine State Senator Jill Duson has submitted a bill proposing the ban of flavored tobacco products statewide, according to a spokesperson from the Maine Senate Democrats on Tuesday.
- Flavored tobacco products are under increasing scrutiny from lawmakers, with California voters in November implementing a statewide ban. Massachusetts also has a ban in place.
- On the other end of the spectrum, Ohio legislators passed a bill in December 2022 that would prohibit any cities or other political localities in the state from imposing harsher restrictions on tobacco sales than the state’s rules.
Dive Insight:
Governments and voters have increasingly taken matters into their own hands while waiting for the FDA to make a decision on whether or not to ban menthol-flavored tobacco products. This web of varying restrictions can add a layer of complexity for c-store operators and other retailers that sell tobacco products.
Flavored tobacco sales pit two state interests against one another. On one side is the health of residents, especially younger residents. According to the FDA and Centers for Disease Control, more than 10% of school-age youths in the U.S. use tobacco products, and 85% use flavored products.
On the other hand, tobacco tax revenue brings a lot of money into state and local coffers. California, for example, reported more than $1.5 billion in tobacco tax revenue in 2021 alone. Menthol-flavored products account for over a third of U.S. tobacco sales.
The FDA already bans unapproved flavored e-cigarette cartridges.
The Maine bill has been submitted and is currently going through the Office of the Revisor of Statutes. This means the full text is not yet publicly available and a specific timetable for that release depends on the Revidor’s office’s review, said the spokesperson. This bill follows a similar Maine bill that died on adjournment in May 2022.
The Ohio law, meanwhile, followed the state enacting a ban on flavored tobacco products, including menthols, which is slated to go into effect in 2024. Other parts of Ohio had previously passed similar legislation, which would all be struck if the statewide law goes into effect. The statewide law passed the legislature, but still awaits Gov. Mike DeWine’s signature or veto.
