Posted: | June 3, 2019 11:41 AM |
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From: | Representative Greg Rothman and Rep. Jason Dawkins, Rep. Stephen Kinsey |
To: | All House members |
Subject: | Tobacco 21 Legislation |
Cigarette and smokeless tobacco use among our school-aged children has been on the decline. This is undoubtedly due in large part to the key roles played by government, industry and our communities. Unfortunately, there has been a sharp increase in the use of e-cigarette products among school aged children. So much so, last September the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) took historic enforcement actions to address what they have deemed to be an epidemic. While the steps that were taken at the Federal level are helpful, we can do more to remove tobacco products from our schools. That is why we will be introducing legislation that will raise the age for the purchase of all tobacco, e-cigarette and like products, to age 21, with consideration for members of our armed services. With nearly half of graduating seniors in high school currently able to legally purchase these products, it is abundantly clear how the product is getting into our schools. By raising the legal purchase age to 21, we will create a separation between the schools and legal users of these products, stemming or outright stopping the so called “social sourcing”. I hope that you will join us in co-sponsoring this important legislation. |
Introduced as HB1823