Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced the latest effort to curb youth smoking, vaping and use of e-cigarette tobacco products to keep residents healthy. The new efforts will increase the taxes for e-cigarettes and mandate that all tobacco products and accessories, including e-cigarette and vaping products, be located behind the counter at retail stores. The new ordinance includes the following improvements:

Increasing the tax of e-cigarettes: Expanding on Chairman Burke’s ordinance introduced in June, Mayor Emanuel’s proposal would increase taxes on liquid nicotine, found in vaporizer and e-cigarette products, and extend the tax to e-cigarette devices that are packaged with liquid nicotine products. The tax is currently $0.80 per device or container and $0.55 per mL of liquid nicotine, and last year created $772,000 in revenue for school-based health services. The new ordinance proposes increasing those taxes to $1.50 per device or container and $1.20 per mL. Vape products, particularly easily concealed, flavored liquid products, have risen in popularity in recent years among youth. This measure, coupled with efforts to counter the tobacco industry’s marketing and prohibit youth access, will continue to support youth in making healthy choices for their futures.

Restricting location of e-cigarette products behind the sales counter: Mayor Emanuel will also propose new restrictions on all tobacco products and accessories, including e-cigarette and vaping products, that would help ensure they are behind the sales counter rather than being immediately in front of consumers at the point of sale. This measure builds on the city’s policies that counter strong marketing campaigns by tobacco companies that target youth in retail stores through product displays. Moving all products behind the counter, coupled with now-mandated warning signs being developed by CDPH, would reduce the visibility of Big Tobacco’s marketing and increase awareness about the risks associated with use of e-cigarettes and other tobacco products.