This decision brings Florida into compliance with existing federal laws. It is also an important step for public health. Research shows that raising the legal age to buy tobacco and nicotine can reduce the number of adolescents and young adults who start smoking, with immediate health benefits and reducing smoking-related deaths. [1] At a March hearing of the Senate Committee on Regulated Industries, chaired by Hutson, McCormick noted that smokeless vaping is „twice as effective“ as nicotine patches or chewing gum for those trying to quit smoking. „I am aware of the health risks of smoking,“ Mayfield said during a discussion of the bill before the Senate Health Policy Committee. She briefly described the effect of esophageal cancer on her husband, former Rep. Stan Mayfield. Senator Aaron Bean, R-Jacksonville, feared depriving people who were of legal voting age. FLORIDA LEGISLATURE: Bill Raising Legal Smoking Age, Vaping to 21 Heads to Governor DeSantis The bill also provides an exemption for members of the U.S.

military, though the Department of Defense has changed the legal age to smoke in the military to 21. The new Tobacco 21 Directive also covers the sale of e-cigarettes. As with traditional cigarettes or smokeless tobacco, the legal age to buy an e-cigarette in Florida is now 21. The Trump administration raised the age to smoke tobacco and nicotine from 18 to 21 in 2019, as did at least 30 other states and more than 540 locations across the country (including Martin and Alachua counties), according to Tobaccofreekids.org. CLARENCE PAGE:I Stop vaping smoking, and now I`m worried — if you sign your name and raise your hand and get an M16 and you`re asked to die for your country, smoking is the least you have to worry about,“ Matt Willhite, a Democrat at Palm Beach County House, said last month. The main source of fierce opposition from health authorities is that the legislation removes local and county authority to regulate teen smoking and transfers it to the state`s Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which they say will not be as effective at calling retailers who sell these products to people under 21. The law also prohibits people under the age of 21 from smoking or vaping within 1,000 feet of a school. „We cannot fulfill our mission to provide the one billion adult smokers in the world with a real alternative to combustible cigarettes if youth consumption continues unabated,“ Kwong said in a statement.

„Tobacco 21 laws have been shown to significantly reduce teen smoking rates, which is why we strongly support raising the minimum age of purchase for all tobacco products, including vaping products like JUUL, to 21 in Florida.“ Distinguishing nicotine-containing smoking devices from tobacco cigarettes is important to the more than 1,000 small businesses that sell the products, said JD McCormick, president of the Florida Smoke Free Association, which represents vaping retailers. The survey found that teens say they smoke mostly sweet and candy flavors. SB 1618, also known as the „Tobacco Act,“21 would raise the legal age to purchase tobacco products – including electronic devices – from 18 to 21. It also prohibits the sale of tobacco products in vending machines. It was first voted on in the Senate committee today and received positive media coverage. Mother of five Toledo says that while no one knows the long-term effects of vaping, she has seen „a lot of people“ injured and even hospitalized for smoking a lot. TAMPA, Fla. — In an effort to reduce teen vaping, Florida lawmakers have passed a law raising the state`s legal age to vape or smoke tobacco from 18 to 21. „While the American Lung Association supports increasing the age and sales of tobacco products to 21, we don`t want to do so while undermining the work underway in various communities to adopt and implement best practices in tobacco prevention and control,“ said Ashley Lyerly. lobbyist for the association, during a phone call Monday. The bill was supported in the Florida House of Representatives by Republican Jackie Toledo of Tampa and Democrat Nick Duran of Miami and in the Senate by Republican Travis Hutson of Palm Bay. Toledo says the measure is an important step in enforcing the age of consent to smoke and vape, and says it will go a long way toward reducing that use among Florida teens.

The law went into effect at 12:01 p.m., meaning it`s illegal in Florida for anyone under the age of 21 to buy, possess or smoke tobacco and nicotine products, including e-cigarettes. Many believe smoking is a choice for adults, but nearly nine out of 10 smokers in the U.S. start at age 18. [2] For young people who „experiment“ with tobacco, nicotine addiction sets in quickly and they cannot stop. For this reason, reducing smoking initiation among people under 21 years of age is an important step in addressing the overall smoking rate. Once approved by the ministry, a merchant can use card readers, readers or other electronic or automated systems to verify that a person is of legal age to purchase tobacco products instead of a calendar. Failure to comply with the provisions of this subsection will result in the imposition of administrative penalties in accordance with § 569.006. SB 1080, the new regulation that sets the minimum age for the purchase of tobacco and nicotine products at 21, contains new restrictions for retailers selling tobacco and nicotine products such as cigars, cigarettes or e-cigarettes. Daytona Beach, for example, has an ordinance that restricts outdoor advertising and sponsorship of tobacco products. And Flagler and St. Johns County restricts where flavoured tobacco products can be displayed in stores. „We worked with opponents of the previous bill and found common ground early on,“ Hutson said Monday.

„There were two issues with the bill by the governor`s veto last year: the taste ban and the designation of a vape product that contains nicotine but is not tobacco. We stopped calling it tobacco. The foregoing is not an exhaustive list of all applicable regulations and is subject to change. It is intended to serve as an introduction and examples of how the new Tobacco Act21 is being implemented statewide. Federal law had already raised the minimum age for the sale of cigarettes and e-cigarettes to 21. 1. In October 2021, Florida introduced a new statewide law that raises the minimum age to purchase tobacco and nicotine products from 18 to 21. Florida`s new law also exempts military personnel from the age restriction. Hutson said the law addresses a critical concern: keeping nicotine products away from children. Hutson`s bill was supported by both parties, moving to the Senate 29-9 and the House of Representatives 103-13.

[1] Institute of Medicine. 2015. Public Health Impact of Raising the Minimum Age of Legal Access to Tobacco Products. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi.org/10.17226/18997. A merchant who uses a sign as described in this subsection must comply with the signage requirements of subsection (1) and subsection 569.43 (1). The minimum age to purchase tobacco and nicotine products – such as vaping devices – increases on June 1. October at 21, but that`s only half the story behind a new Florida law. Nicotine can also severely damage the developing brain. The brains of adolescents are more sensitive than those of adult adults and are formed at the age of 25.