Washington Legislation to Raise Legal Age for Tobacco and Vapor Products to 21 Passed by House Committee
Washington State legislation to raise the legal age for purchasing and using tobacco and vapor products has been passed by its initial House committee.
House Bill 1074 was filed by State Representative Paul Harris (R) along with a bipartisan group of 28 other representatives. It was passed by the House Health Care & Wellness Committee today by a vote of 12 to 2.
According to the measure’s official legislative digest, it “Raises the legal age to twenty-one years for the lawful sale or distribution of tobacco and vapor products”, and “Authorizes the governor, in recognition of the sovereign authority of tribal governments, to seek government-to-government consultations with Indian tribes regarding raising the minimum legal age of sale in certain compacts.”
The legislation makes it so that “A person who sells cigars, cigarettes, cigarette paper, tobacco, or vapor products to a person under the age of 21 is guilty of a gross misdemeanor.” In addition, it states that “Tobacco products may not be sold through a vending machine unless the machine is located in a place where persons under the age of 21 are prohibited or in an industrial worksite where persons under the age of 21 are not employed, and it is located at least 10 feet from entrances and exits.”
For the full text of House Bill 1074, click here.
In 2017, Oregon passed into law a similar measure which raised the legal age for tobacco and “inhalant delivery systems” to 21.