House passes bill banning local regulation of vape flavors, tobacco products
The South Carolina House voted Wednesday to pass a bill that would ban local governments from creating their own regulations on tobacco products.
The bill, which has been criticized by public health groups for preempting local rule, was passed by a vote of 80-23 Wednesday morning after very little debate. After receiving a perfunctory third reading Thursday, the bill will be sent to the Senate.
The bill would ban local governments from regulating cigarette, vape or electronic cigarette flavors and ingredients. An electronic cigarette is a device that heat liquids with nicotine to produce a vapor that the user inhales. The bill would also block local governments from requiring local licenses to sell tobacco products.
The bill is part of an effort to standardize tobacco regulations across the state to make it easier on businesses and consumers, supporters say. Lawmakers want to ensure that only the state and federal government can regulate tobacco sales.
Lawmakers have voted to allow one exception to the bill: Myrtle Beach, which passed an ordinance in 2018 banning goods made from tobacco and CBD, a non-psychoactive cannabis derivative, from being sold on Ocean Boulevard, a popular tourist thoroughfare. Since then, local businesses have been fighting the rule in court.
Only two House members spoke on the floor Wednesday: Rep. Micah Caskey, R-Lexington, who explained the bill and Rep. Jonathon Hill, R-Anderson, who questioned whether it was needed.
“I would very much like to know why we need to standardize?” Hill asked.
Hill said someone asked him to try to kill the bill, but he ultimately voted in favor of it.
The bill isn’t without its opponents.
During a committee meeting Tuesday, some lawmakers voiced concerns that the bill would take away power from local governments to protect the health of local residents by regulating tobacco. Currently, Myrtle Beach is the only city in the state to enact such ordinances.
In a letter sent to lawmakers Tuesday, state and national public health advocates — including the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, the South Carolina Cancer Alliance and the S.C. Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics —argued that the bill took away local governments ability to specifically protect children, who have seen incredibly elevated rates of smoking over the last few years.
The groups said that the nationwide rate of youth smoking or partaking in tobacco products are at their highest levels in 20 years, adding that the 2019 S.C. Youth Tobacco Survey showed that about 30% of high school students in the state reported using tobacco products.
