Los Angeles Flavored-Tobacco Ban Upheld by U.S. Supreme Court

(No Ratings Yet)

Loading...

The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear a challenge by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company to Los Angeles County’s ban on sales of flavored tobacco products. The tobacco company had argued that only the federal government, not state or local governments, had the legal authority to regulate tobacco products. However, the court upheld the lower court’s decision to uphold the ban, which includes menthol cigarettes and vape juice, that took effect in 2020. R.J. Reynolds is part of British American Tobacco.

The ban on flavored tobacco products, especially e-cigarettes, has been scrutinized recently as critics have said they appeal to youth. Concerns have arisen about a rise in e-cigarette and tobacco use by teenagers, leading to policies aimed at curbing sales of these products. California became the second state to ban all flavored tobacco product sales after Massachusetts in 2019. Several other states have restricted flavored vaping products, and several municipalities have adopted their bans.

The local ban in Los Angeles was signed into law by then-Mayor Eric Garcetti in June 2020, a move hailed by medical groups, including the American Lung Association, which called it a “tremendous step in public health.” However, R.J. Reynolds argued that the local ban was illegal, claiming that only the federal government could regulate tobacco products.

  

What

Where

Search Jobs

Last year, a three-judge panel of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Los Angeles ban on a 2-1 vote. The panel found that the industry was misreading the 2009 law that gave the FDA sole authority to develop and enforce “tobacco product standards,” noting that this means the agency has exclusive power to regulate the production and marketing of tobacco products, not retail sales.

R.J. Reynolds also challenged the statewide ban on flavored tobacco products in California, but the Supreme Court allowed it to go into effect in December. Governor Gavin Newsom signed that ban into law in 2020, and voters upheld it in a 2022 ballot initiative. Nearly two-thirds of voters approved the sales ban.

Last year, the FDA sought to pull all of leading e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc’s products off the market, citing concerns about a rise in e-cigarette and tobacco use by teens. However, that decision is on hold while the company challenges it. In 2022, the FDA released a long-awaited proposal to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars in the United States, but it is expected to take years to implement.

The legal battle over flavored tobacco products is far from over. While the Supreme Court has upheld bans in California and Los Angeles, further challenges may be ahead. The tobacco industry has already proven to be a formidable opponent, gathering enough signatures to put a ballot initiative before voters in California to halt the statewide ban. Nevertheless, the bans remain in effect for now, and public health advocates hope they will help reduce the use of flavored tobacco products and protect young people from the harms of addiction.

REFERENCES:

U.S. Supreme Court snuffs company challenge to Los Angeles flavored-tobacco ban