Florida Passes Tobacco 21 Legislation 

The Florida Senate passed SB 810 earlier this month, and it will now be passed on to Governor Ron DeSantis for approval. “As I learned last summer during my statewide fact-finding mission, vaping is taking over our schools and addicting our kids. That is why I took swift action—launching a teen-vaping investigation in Florida involving some 20 companies and leading a multistate investigation into JUUL,” said Moody.

Moody started working with state lawmakers on the legislation last year, and is happy to see it has been passed onto the final stage of Florida’s Legislature. “I want to thank Senator Simmons, Representative Toledo, Senator Flores and each and every member who voted in favor of this bill to protect Florida’s children. As I said after announcing my fact-finding mission, we cannot stand idly by while the next generation becomes addicted to nicotine. Our legislative leaders agreed, and I am proud of the swift action they took to stop underage vaping and protect our children.”

“Vaping has reached epidemic levels among our young people. I am proud to have sponsored this measure to raise the smoking and vaping age to 21 and limit products specially marketed toward children. I appreciate the hard work of Representative Toledo, who sponsored this legislation in the House of Representatives, as well as the strong support of Attorney General Moody. Together, the state of Florida is taking action to put an end to this crisis and ultimately save lives,” added Senate President Pro Tempore David Simmons.

California cities impose fines

Meanwhile, at least four California cities and Park Ridge, a suburb of Chicago, have passed or are considering laws that impose fines on minors caught vaping. Most of these laws call for noncriminal administrative fines ranging from $100 to $500, and allow the teens to attend a tobacco educational or diversion program instead of paying the fine.

“It really is about education and hopefully convince them that not using these products is better for them,” said Wahid Kazem, the public information officer of Santa Clara, where such a measure is in place. “There really is no significant hammer behind it. They meet with someone here that educates them on the impact of using tobacco products.”

Read Further: Space Coast Daily

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