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Mandan bans e-cigarettes for minors

By LeAnn Eckroth, Bismarck Tribune
MANDAN, N.D. –The Mandan City Commission on Tuesday approved the first reading of an ordinance that bans selling e-cigarettes to minors under the age 18. The vote was 4-0.
The Mandan ordinance prohibits providing or selling the products to minors, and minors cannot have or use them.
E-cigarettes include any electronic oral device with a heating element, battery or electronic circuit which provides vapor of nicotine or other substances to simulate smoking.
Violators can be fined up to $500 for the infraction, said City Administrator Jim Neubauer.
Police Chief Dennis Bullinger introduced the proposal.
There was no comment from commissioners who quickly moved the ordinance to a final vote on March 4.
To read more: http://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/mandan-bans-e-cigarettes-for-minors/article_2923d71c-9905-11e3-9a69-0019bb2963f4.html

City moves to ban e-cigarettes for minors

By: Eric Killelea, Williston Herald
The city of Williston is one step closer to preventing the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors.
On Tuesday, commissioners approved the first reading of Ordinance No. 987, which amends the existing ordinance that prevents the sale of tobacco to anyone under the age of 18.
The Upper Missouri District Health Unit approached the board last month, requesting support for implementing the ordinance. Chelsea Bryant, tobacco prevention specialist, said the state currently lacks a law or ordinance to restrict purchase of e-cigarettes and wanted to board to take initiative.
To read more, visit http://www.willistonherald.com/news/city-moves-to-ban-e-cigarettes-for-minors/article_9769aa48-94c9-11e3-aa41-001a4bcf887a.html

SADD Conference Talks E-Cigarettes

By Steph Scheurer – email
E-cigarettes are a popular alternative to regular cigarettes and a hot topic.
Bismarck-Burleigh Public Health wants to educate students about the dangers of this product.
A workshop on e-cigarettes is held at the SADD Conference in Bismarck.
Currently there are no age restrictions on this electronic cigarette.
The goal is to educate the students on how the tobacco industry is marketing e-cigarettes to target youth.
“Even though it’s candy flavored doesn’t mean it’s less harmful. We still are learning more about e-cigarettes through the research that is being done. The FDA is not overseeing them at this time so we need to be careful with this product,” says Susan Kahler, Community Outreach Coordinator, Bismarck-Burleigh Public Health.
Kahler (Kay-ler) says she’s hoping that next year there will become a state law that includes e-cigarettes to be age 18 or older.
Bismarck is currently working on passing an ordinance which would put an age restriction on them.
http://www.kxnet.com/story/24696713/sadd-conference-talks-e-cigarrettes

Bismarck bans e-cigarette sales to minors

By LeAnn Eckroth
BISMARCK, N.D. –The Bismarck City Commission on Tuesday banned selling or providing e-cigarettes to people under the age of 18. The new law, approved 5-0, also prohibits minors from using and selling the product.
Violators will be fined up to $500. Minors found having or using the product could be fined up to $70.
The ordinance says minors cannot be sold devices with a heating element — battery or electric circuit — to inhale as if smoking cigarettes, or possess such elements. The devices include those that contain nicotine or simulate cigarette use.
No one objected to the new ordinance at the public hearing Tuesday.
Valerie [Schoepf], a board member of the of the Tobacco Free Coalition, supported it.
“Without passage of this ordinance, it would technically remain legal for an 8, 12 or 17-year-old to purchase e-cigarettes in our community. It’s time to close this loophole,” she said.
“Not only can these be candy-flavored, you can buy cartoon wraps for them to make them visually pleasing, said Mandy Jordan, a representative of the Century High School Chapter of Students Against Destructive Decisions.
To read more, visit: http://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/bismarck-bans-e-cigarette-sales-to-minors/article_cc176c66-938a-11e3-b224-0019bb2963f4.html

Officials hope to educate on e-cigarettes

By Matthew Liedke • Daily News
Advocates pushing for tobacco prevention are now having to deal with a new device on the market that isn’t subject to the same regulations as traditional cigarettes.
Jennifer Mauch, Richland County Tobacco Prevention coordinator, said a rising issue is e-cigarettes, and how traditional companies seem to be getting more and more involved.
“Altria, which produces Marlboro products, is among other large tobacco companies that are buying e-cigarette manufacturers,” Mauch said. “I’ve been looking back at the way traditional tobacco products were advertised and the advertising for e-cigarettes seems very much like a repeat.
“I think they are seeing that this is where the market is going, so they are buying it up,” said Mauch, who added that e-cigarettes make up 1 percent of national smoking sales.
The problem with these devices, Mauch explained, is the Food and Drug Administration doesn’t regulate e-cigarette products, as they don’t contain tobacco. This leads to not even knowing what is in the e-cigarette.
“They may be in fact safer than traditional cigarettes, but we just don’t know,” Mauch said. “The issue is that we don’t know how much nicotine is in them, or what else is in them. There are some who say they don’t contain any nicotine, but we don’t know if that’s the case.”
The laws in the different states throughout the country also give challenges to regulating the e-cigarette product. In North Dakota, Mauch explained, there is no age restrictions on the products which she called “a major gateway.”
North Dakota was proactive in another law, though, which bans using e-cigarettes inside all places that traditional tobacco products are not allowed. However, in other states, such as Minnesota, it can still be used inside such places.
“The fear is that it’s becoming a social norm again,” Mauch said. “So it’s like moving backwards.
Currently, Mauch said the best thing she can do is educate the public about e-cigarettes.
“It always starts small,” Mauch said. “At this point we are just trying to educate people and have them realize that we don’t know if this is a safe product yet, so proceed with caution if you plan to use it. Unless they are studied further and regulated, we really want to get people to notice the education that is out there and be careful.”
In terms of her own office dealing with the situation, Mauch said she is currently working with communities and schools to get youth tobacco ordinances in place, which add e-cigarettes to the definitions of tobacco products.
http://www.wahpetondailynews.com/news/article_2055b402-9117-11e3-8f2b-001a4bcf887a.html

EDITORIAL: Raise Colorado's minimum age for buying cigarettes to 21

By The Denver Post Editorial Board
Teen smoking is not a right, it is a horrible choice that is addictive and incredibly damaging to the young brain.
The federal government has left it up to local and state governments to raise the legal age to buy cigarettes, and Colorado is looking to do just that.
Sen. Steve King, R-Grand Junction, is pushing a bill that will be introduced soon to increase the cigarette-buying age from 18 to 21 — a move he says would add consistency to vice laws that set a 21 age limit to buy recreational marijuana, gamble and buy alcohol.
New York City last year raised the tobacco buying age to 21 and so did Utah— dismissing the argument that 18-year-olds who are old enough to fight in wars and vote should be allowed to buy cigarettes.
That is a bad position when you are talking about the supremely addictive substance of nicotine and what it does to teens.
Research shows adolescent smokers are more likely to become heavy smokers, are much less likely to quit smoking later in life, and are more likely to die from smoking-related illnesses.
Additionally, nicotine has more deleterious effects on developing brain of an 18-year-old than a 21-year-old.
Though the numbers of teen smokers have declined, research shows virtually all new users of tobacco products are under 18.
History also shows raising age limits works. It did with alcohol.
In the 1970s, states lowered the legal age to buy alcohol to 18, a major mistake that resulted in more drunken-driving deaths.
In the 1980s, Congress passed the Uniform Minimum Drinking Age Act, giving states a financial incentive to raise the drinking age to 21. States began reporting fewer drunken-driving deaths, and youth usage and binge drinking fell by a third.
In 2005, the town of Needham, Mass., raised the age to buy cigarettes to 21. The result has been a dramatic local decline in smoking.
Society has said teens can’t smoke recreational pot; we should be consistent with tobacco.
http://www.denverpost.com/editorials/ci_25054723/raise-colorados-minimum-age-buying-cigarettes-21#ixzz2sOZXWxRI

Public hearing scheduled on proposed e-cigarette ban

By LeAnn Eckroth, Bismarck Tribune
BISMARCK, N.D. –A Feb. 11 public hearing is scheduled on a proposed Bismarck ordinance that bans selling e-cigarettes to minors.
The Bismarck City Commission set the hearing date Tuesday. Under the ordinance, those providing or selling e-cigarettes to people under age 18 could be fined up to $500. Minors found possessing or using the product could be fined up to $70.
The proposal also states that devices marketed and sold as e-cigars and e-pipes cannot be sold or provided to minors, and that minors cannot possess or use them. Commissioners did not comment about the ordinance at the meeting.
The Bismarck ordinance also would bar minors from having or using electronic oral devices with a heating element — battery or electric circuit — to inhale as if smoking cigarettes. They include devices that both contain nicotine or simulate cigarette use.
http://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/public-hearing-scheduled-on-proposed-e-cigarette-ban/article_c777742a-8882-11e3-b9e4-0019bb2963f4.html

Colorado lawmakers look to outlaw tobacco use for those under 21

By Lynn Bartels
The Denver Post
A bill that would raise the age for buying cigarettes and other tobacco products from 18 to 21 is intended to try to keep young kids from picking up the habit.
The bipartisan measure, from two Democrats in the House and two in the Senate, could be introduced as early as Tuesday.
Jodi L. Radke of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids said most 18-year-olds are seniors in high school.
“They are able to go off campus during the lunch hour and buy tobacco products and oftentimes they are coming back to use them across the street or near campus and sharing them with their peers,” she said. “The push behind this is to delay the initiation with kids; 95 percent of tobacco users begin using tobacco before the age of 21.”
The bill will cover tobacco products, including cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and chewing tobacco. It does not increase penalties, only the age.
An underage person who buys a tobacco product commits a Class 2 petty offense and faces a $100 fine or community service. It also is a petty offense to sell to a minor, with fines varying depending on the number of offenses.
In addition to Colorado, legislatures in Utah and Maryland will take up the issue this year, Radke said. Already, New York City and Hawaii County in Hawaii have raised the age from 18 to 21.
The sponsors of the Colorado measure are Sens. Steve King, R-Grand Junction, and John Kefalas, D-Fort Collins, and Reps. Beth McCann, D-Denver, and Cheri Gerou, R-Evergreen.
“Drinking is 21. Marijuana is 21. Gambling is 21. We’re just making tobacco 21 also,” King said. “It’s a consistency across those laws.”
He added that studies show people who haven’t started smoking by age 18 generally don’t start.
Colorado lawmakers look to outlaw tobacco use for those under 21 – The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/politics/ci_25006278/colorado-lawmakers-look-outlaw-tobacco-use-those-under#ixzz2rp7x2OXR 

Bismarck mulls age limits on e-cigarette users

By LeAnn Eckroth, Bismarck Tribune
BISMARCK, N.D. —The Bismarck City Commission might crack down on the sale of e-cigarettes to minors under age 18. Minors found having or using the products also would be fined under the proposed ordinance.
Commissioners will review the first reading of the proposal today for a possible February hearing, City Attorney Charlie Whitman said.
Those selling or furnishing electronic cigarettes to minors could face up to a $500 fine under the proposed ordinance, Whitman said, and minors possessing or using the devices could pay up to a $70 fine.
E-cigarettes were banned in or near public places by the Legislature. State law also requires no vapors be emitted by e-cigarettes inside or 20 feet from public places.
The Bismarck ordinance would ban minors’ use of electronic oral devices with a heating element — battery or electric circuit — that provides nicotine or any other substance to be inhaled to simulate smoking.
The ordinance states devices marketed and sold as e-cigarettes, e-cigars and e-pipes cannot be sold or provided to minors, and that minors cannot possess or use them.
Pat McGeary, coordinator for the Bismarck Tobacco Free Coalition, said Monday that the group requested that Bismarck include the ordinance because the devices have not been proven safe. She said the electronic cigarettes are not controlled by the Federal Drug Administration. “There is no scientific evidence of the safety of e-cigarettes. The FDA has done preliminary testing that detected cancer-causing material in them and traces of nicotine,” she said.
“Our concern is that American tobacco companies have bought the e-cigarette companies and marketing it ‘kid friendly,'” she said. “They sell it in flavors like chocolate. We also are looking at e-cigarettes as a possible gateway drug.”
She said a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey showed that the use of e-cigarettes by minors has jumped from 4 percent in 2011 to 10 percent in 2012 nationwide.
“These are not FDA-regulated,” McGeary said. “These products have emerged more frequently in the last two years and (their companies) seem to be marketing more aggressively to the youth,” she said.
She said the FDA does not now control the levels of nicotine in the e-cigarette products. “(The levels) are all over the board, according to a preliminary study by the FDA,” she said. “The e-cigarettes have not been found to be safe. It’s not established.”
The Federal Drug Administration found that cartridges labeled as containing no nicotine contained nicotine and that three different electronic cigarette cartridges with the same label emitted a markedly different amount of nicotine, according to the North Dakota Center for Tobacco Prevention and Control Policy.
“I think it’s a natural and reasonable restriction,” Bismarck City Commissioner Josh Askvig said. “If the city won’t allow the sale of tobacco products and nicotine to minors, the same argument stands for this product.
“My personal opinion is this is a loophole into (minors) smoking that we can control before they get hooked on it before they are of legal age,” he added.
“I’m OK with the ordinance,” Bismarck Commissioner Mike Seminary said. “I don’t think we should encourage minors to smoke anything.”
The Tribune contacted some stores Monday that sell e-cigarettes and they assured that they already set limits on who buys the product.
“We only sell to those over 18,” said Chris Pribyl, manager of Tobacco Row.
“Minors cannot come through our doors. We card everyone who looks under age 27,” said Suzanne Willis, manager of Discount Smoke. “It says right on the package: ‘Not for sale for minors.'”
Sara Lang, manager of Red Carpet Car Wash, said employees card buyers of the product to ensure they are eligible. “We treat it like we were selling tobacco,” she said.
The proposed e-cigarette ordinance mirrors two passed by the Fargo City Commission on Jan. 6. The ordinances both prohibit the sale of e-cigarettes to minors and the use and possession by minors. Minors who violate the Fargo law will pay a $25 fine and complete a tobacco education program.
Under the Fargo law, a clerk who sells e-cigarettes to a person under age 18 will pay a $50 fine. A business that sells e-cigarettes to a minor will get a warning for the first sale in 12 months, have its tobacco license suspended for the second violation in a year and have its tobacco license suspended for 10 days for the third illegal sale within 12 months.
Whitman said Bismarck’s ordinance wording does not mention suspension of tobacco licenses because it would not affect stores that do not sell tobacco, but sell e-cigarettes.
http://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/bismarck-mulls-age-limits-on-e-cigarette-users/article_201fa2e8-87aa-11e3-9659-001a4bcf887a.html

City looks at e-cigarettes

By: Eric Killelea, Williston Herald
The Upper Missouri District Health Unit wants the Williston City Commission to amend its codes to include restrictions on the purchase of electronic cigarettes to anyone under the age of 18 years old.
On Tuesday, Chelsea Bryant, tobacco prevention specialist, requested support from the commission.
North Dakota currently lacks a law or ordinance to restrict purchase of e-cigarettes, Bryant said. Fargo is the only city to have changed its codes in similar efforts to that of Upper Missouri District, having done so Jan. 7.
To read more, visit http://www.willistonherald.com/news/city-looks-at-e-cigarettes/article_35168482-7ec7-11e3-b508-0019bb2963f4.html