Colorado Moves To Raise Smoking, Vaping Age; Denver Bill Advances

DENVER, CO — As local cities move to pass new laws intended to curb teen smoking and vaping, the state of Colorado also is taking a stand by attempting to pass legislation to raise the legal age to purchase tobacco and nicotine products such as e-cigarettes from 18 to 21, according to reports.

The statewide bill, while in its early stages, was proposed by Republican lawmakers Rep. Colin Larson, of Littleton, and Sen. Kevin Priola, of Henderson, the Denver Post reports. The legislation is intended to curb teenage vaping.

The news comes on the heels of an announcement by the Trump administration, which plans to take all flavored e-cigarette cartridges off the market, Axios reports. Alex Azar, the federal Health and Human Services secretary, said Wednesday the FDA is finalizing plans, which would leave only tobacco flavored cartridges on shelves.

The move also is to discourage kids from vaping.

At the state level, youth vape nicotine is at twice the national average and has the highest rate of 37 states surveyed, according to 2018 research by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A state survey showed about half of Colorado high school students tried vaping nicotine, don't see it as risky, and think vaping products are easy to get, even though it is illegal to purchase them as minors.

Colorado also is one of multiple states investigating sudden and severe lung illness associated with vaping. Currently, there are four recorded cases of vaping illness, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health.

So far, more than 450 possible cases of e-cigarette-related lung illnesses have been reported to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The cases span 33 states and five deaths have been confirmed in California, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota and Oregon.

On Wednesday, the Denver City Council Safety Committee advanced a proposal from the city's Department of Public Health and Environment to raise the legal age to purchase tobacco and vaping products in Denver from 18 to 21, KDVR-TV reports. Denver joins communities including Aspen, which raised its tobacco age in 2018. Boulder did the same in August.

The bill also would require stores that sell tobacco, e-cigarettes and vapes with nicotine cartridges to obtain a license to sell those products.

Over the past two and a half years, the public health department sent underage kids to Denver stores to purchase cigarettes and vaping products, Denverite reports. According to the department, about 7 to 10 percent of stores sold the kids cigarettes, while 27 percent of stores sold them vaping products.

Denver public health officials said they currently have no idea which stores sell what nicotine products, so requiring a license will curb underage sales and hold stores accountable.

Applying for a license will require a one-time $250 application fee and then $500 if a store receives a license. Store owners will be required to renew their license on an annual basis based on the store's history of compliance over the previous year. A store will be charged another $500 annual fee if its license is renewed.

The bill will now go to full council for consideration. If passed, the new age requirement will take effect when Mayor Michael Hancock signs the legislation.

Larson, however, told the Post local laws aren’t the answer to the problem.

“If Denver, for instance, tomorrow raised the age of purchase to 21, all that’s going to do make the 7-Eleven in Lakewood, in Littleton a lot more profitable than the ones in Denver County,” he said.

Patch staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.