Foster City to pass flavored tobacco ban

The council originally only planned to apply an ordinance to flavored tobacco, but a push from Gehani and Vice Mayor Jon Froomin at the Oct. 3 meeting to have a more stringent ban that includes e-cigarettes swayed Mayor Richa Awasthi and Councilmember Patrick Sullivan. Staff will also bring back a tobacco resale license ordinance to address violations of the smoking ordinance ban brought. The ordinance, suggested by Froomin, will detail enforcement the city can take for those who defy the ban. Froomin said stringent enforcement was needed to be effective in the community.

“You use a tobacco license program where that retailer, on the first offense, can’t sell any tobacco for 30 days. I doubt we will have any violations,” Froomin said.

The proposed ordinance would apply to convenience stores, grocery stores, gas stations and other businesses. One of the ordinance’s main targets is e-cigarettes, often called vapes. Popular with kids, vapes are generally battery-operated and use a heating element to heat e-liquid from a cartridge. Usually sold at gas stations and convenience stores, they attract attention due to their color and unique flavors, like candy and mint flavors. A 2019 Tobacco-Free Kids found that 81% of youths who used tobacco products started with a flavored product, while 72.3% of youth tobacco users have used a flavored tobacco product. The FDA found e-cigarette usage among high schoolers between 2017 to 2018 increased by 78%, with one in five high school students currently using it, according to a city staff report.

Cities like Half Moon Bay, South San Francisco, Burlingame, San Carlos, San Mateo and Redwood City have prohibited selling flavored tobacco. The state has passed Senate Bill 793, signed into law in 2020, which calls for tobacco retailers not to sell flavored tobacco products. However, the state has halted implementation due to a referendum calling for its repeal, stalling a decision. California voters in the November election will vote on the status of SB 793, called Proposition 31.

Gehani originally called for an ordinance in July, citing a need to protect Foster City youth targeted by the tobacco industry. The council considered a draft ordinance amendment at its Aug. 15 meeting, but tabled an ordinance prohibiting selling flavored tobacco and electronic cigarettes, with Awasthi and Sullivan citing litigation concerns and a desire to see what actions voters take in November that could save the city time and money. At its Sept. 19 meeting, the council agreed to put an ordinance back on for discussion.

Awasthi, who brought the item back, said she wanted Foster City to send a strong message and craft an ordinance similar to Proposition 31. She said there was never any disagreement about the health issues and the need to protect kids. Instead, Awasthi said her initial rationale for delaying an ordinance was that Proposition 31 was up for consideration in November and would be a state blanket ban. She noted Foster City adopted a 2014 ordinance to regulate smoking within the city, with vaping already outlawed because of the ordinance. However, conversations with others convinced her that Foster City passing a law would be a strong message of support for Proposition 31.

Former state Sen. Jerry Hill, who authored SB 793, spoke at the meeting and thanked Gehani for his leadership in bringing the issue forward, Froomin for supporting the issue and Awasthi for bringing it back for reconsideration. Hill has been a vocal proponent of increasing regulations to reduce use among young people.

“I wanted to ban e-cigarettes in the state totally, but that was not on the table because the support was not there,” Hill said Oct. 3. “I’m hoping that this council can show that leadership this evening and show bold leadership to protect the kids in California.”

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

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