In the ‘90s, it was a first-in the nation ban on smoking in most indoor locations. Last year, 63% of Californians voted to uphold a state law banning the sale of flavored tobacco products.
Now, a proposal for a generational ban on tobacco sales.
Assembly Bill 935, by Assemblyman Damon Connolly, D-San Rafael, would prohibit the sale of tobacco products to anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 2007. That means today’s 15-and-16-year-olds, and anyone younger.
“The impetus for the bill is really that we’ve known for 50 years that tobacco and nicotine products cause cancer, are incredibly addictive and decrease quality of life,” Connolly said in an interview with The Bee.
New Zealand has enacted a similar ban, barring the sale of tobacco products to anyone born in 2009 or later.
Connolly, a former Marin County supervisor who in 2018 led an effort there to ban the sale of flavored tobacco products, said that his aim is preventing the next generation of Californians from becoming addicted.
According to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, nearly half a million Californians under the age of 18 will die prematurely from smoking.
Connolly said his bill is a logical progression from the statewide flavored tobacco ban, which also was intended to discourage young people from using tobacco products.
The flavored tobacco ban was popular with voters, but has led to some confusion among both regulators and retailers as to what is illegal and what remains lawful to sell. The California Attorney General’s Office has spent $151 million to educate retailers on the state law and ensure compliance, while penalizing those who sell to those under 21.
Connolly’s bill has a sponsor, the Union of American Physicians and Dentists.
The bill also is supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics -California; Smoke Free Marin; African American Tobacco Control Leadership; Public Health Advocates; International Youth Tobacco Control, and two doctors — Dr. John Maa of San Francisco, who was involved in that city’s successful effort to ban flavored tobacco sales, and Dr. Matt Willis of Marin Public Health, who worked with Connolly on that county’s ban.
Unsurprisingly, the bill has drawn the ire of the tobacco industry, which unsuccessfully fought California’s flavored tobacco ban all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“These proposals are not based on scientific evidence, but rather on a political agenda that seeks to demonize adult cigar smokers and restrict their freedom to enjoy a legal product,” said Joshua Habursky, deputy executive director of The Premium Cigar Association, a trade group representing tobacco retailers, in a statement.
“Clearly it is no longer a hidden agenda of the anti-tobacco groups to support full prohibition,” Habursky said
The association is calling on its California membership to contact their lawmakers to oppose the bill, and also is circulating a petition in opposition.
Connolly said he disputes that characterization of the bill, and that he looks forward to working with all stakeholders.
“We’re excited about this. We think the timing is right. There is a lot of momentum with the steps that have been taken by California as a state toward public health,” Connolly said.
The bill will be heard in committee this spring.
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