“We can ensure that the next generation of children in California do not become addicted to smoking,” said Assemblymember Damon Connolly, a Democrat from San Rafael and the author of the bill.
The proposal is likely to face strong opposition from the tobacco industry, which would fight to maintain access to its largest U.S. market. If the ban were to become law, the industry could sue to block it. It could also challenge the ban at the ballot box, asking voters to stop it from taking effect.
California lawmakers this spring are expected to begin debate on a measure that would eventually eliminate the sale of tobacco products over the next several decades, banning retailers from selling them to anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 2007. "This is not about taking away current rights of anyone; it’s about not creating a new generation of people addicted to nicotine," said Assm. Damon Connolly, D-San Rafael, the author of the measure.
“(The ban) will impact a lot of jobs and it will have a repercussion throughout the economy of California,” said Charles Janigian, president of the California Association of Retail Tobacconists.
Connolly and others are confident the ban would survive if they can get it passed the Legislature. It’s modeled after a similar law New Zealand enacted last year that bans the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after Jan. 1, 2009. In the U.S., the city of Brookline, Massachusetts, passed a local law banning the sale of tobacco products within its borders to anyone born after Jan. 1, 2000 — a law that so far the courts have allowed to remain in effect.
Instead of punishing tobacco consumers, the bill would target retailers instead. It would do this by including a series of financial penalties and license suspensions for retailers who break the proposed law. Specifically, the bill would add Article 6 to Chapter 1 of Part 3 of Division 103 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to tobacco sales.
The ban, however, would not apply to cannabis sales. Lawmakers reasoned that the compulsive nature of nicotine compels youth to become addicted.
The bill was co-authored by Assemblymembers Damon Connolly, (D-San Rafael) and Evan Low (D-Silicon Valley). “This is not about taking away current rights of anyone; it’s about not creating a new generation of people addicted to nicotine,” Connolly said.
California has taken steps already to limit tobacco use among teens as much as possible. In 2020, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law banning the sale of most flavored tobacco products.
“This is a logical next step of that,” Connolly said. “The goal here is to lead, to actually change the conversation beyond our state’s borders and really try to move the needle forward in the direction that favors public health.”
No comments:
Post a Comment