SUPPORTING SETTING THE AGE TO BUY TOBACCO AND VAPING PRODUCTS TO 21 YEARS OLD

Currently, no person under the age of 18 may purchase, attempt to purchase, possess any cigarette, nicotine product, or tobacco product. Current law also prohibits any person from purchasing cigarettes, tobacco products, or nicotine products on behalf of a person who is under the age of 18. Additionally, there is no minimum age to buy vaping products that don't have nicotine. The bill similarly prohibits the purchase of vapor products by or on behalf of a person under the age of 21. Wisconsin State Assembly Bill 422 changes these ages from 18 to 21.

This legislation separately defines “tobacco”, “nicotine”, and “vapor” products, which creates a patchwork of regulation in which these products are not treated equally. Best practice and public health science calls for including e-smoking devices (“vapor products”) in the definition of tobacco so as to create parity in regulating these products in the same way in clean indoor air laws, youth access regulations, taxation, and retail licensing requirements. The legislation does not include any licensing requirements for vape shops, which sets up an uneven playing field and fails to provide any regulatory authority over these shops. The legislation does not repeal the penalties on youth for possession, use, or purchase, as is indicated in the public health evidence and best practice. Such fines have not been shown to be effective tobacco use reduction strategies and create unintended consequences, including: diverting attention from and undermining effective tobacco control strategies, scapegoating youth for the tobacco industry’s responsibility for their marketing practices, and disproportionately impacting youth from certain racial and ethnic groups by introducing them to the criminal justice system.