COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio House will soon open debate on a bill that would restrict the sale of e-cigarettes.
The measure passed by a House committee yesterday would ban the sale of the nicotine-vapor devices to anyone under the age of 18.
Supporters say they’re trying to keep e-cigarettes out of the hands of children but anti-smoking groups and others, including a central Ohio lawmaker, oppose the measure, saying the products need to be taxed like other tobacco products.
“In Ohio, portions of the revenue of nicotine-based products fund programs that educate youth on the dangers of smoking. Under House Bill 144, no funding would be set aside from e-cigarette revenues to educate youth on the prevention and cessation of nicotine” Rep. Heather Bishoff (D-Blacklick) said in a statement after the vote.
The vote by the Health and Aging Committee to create a special category in the law for e-cigarettes came a day after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine joined 39 of his counterparts in requesting the Food and Drug Administration to regulate the devices.
According to Bishoff, data from the 2011 and 2012 National Youth Tobacco Surveys show the number of middle and high school students who said they had tried e-cigarettes doubled in the last year to 1.8 million.