The proposed ban on nicotine and flavored tobacco has a money problem

A bill to ban the sale of flavored nicotine products hit a traffic accident on Wednesday. A tax review found that a ban would drop tobacco sales in Colorado retail stores. This would result in the loss of at least $ 33 million a year in state revenue.

The impact is due to a drop in income based on a decrease in overall product use, said Jodi Radke, of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Children.

The money from tobacco sales is used to finance the prevention and quitting of tobacco and other health programs.

After about five hours of testimony, lawmakers from a House health committee delayed action on the bill. His sponsors, including House President KC Becker, a Boulder Democrat, asked for more time to resolve his tax problems so that he could move forward. We were just in a tough spot, said Becker.

The debate within the House Health and Insurance Committee was part of a familiar logic. Public health advocates and doctors joined a group of high school students to argue that banning flavors would help prevent the next generation from becoming addicted to nicotine. Convenience stores, vaping stores and some adult consumers have argued with lawmakers that this penalizes small businesses and adults who want to quit smoking traditional cigarettes.

Students and lawmakers have noted that vaping flavors are often sold in candy and cereal flavors like MnMs, Capn Crunch, Smores, Green Apple, Cotton Candy, Slurpee and Bubblegum. Flavors are the main reason kids get hooked, said Matthew McGregor, a junior from Boulder High School. It gives the impression of being less of a drug and more like a candy or something else.

Helen Cross, a senior from Nederland High, described how her peers, including on the volleyball team, saw it as a rite of passage to try new flavors provided by more teammates. elderly. Vaping was not about nicotine use, said Cross. It was all about socializing and trying new flavors with their friends. Cross and others saw flavors as a potential route of addiction for young people.

High school students described high levels of regular use by their peers, saying the surveys did not reflect the rates seen at school. The most recent comprehensive survey found that a quarter of Colorado teens are currently vaping. Some students who did not smoke said they had trouble thinking about their classmates who did not use electronic cigarettes.

One of the sponsors of the bills, Rep. Yadira Caraveo, a Democrat and pediatrician from Denver, said in her clinic shelter that she saw a patient as young as 11 years old admit to having vaped.

Vape store owners have argued that a ban would close stores and put people out of work.

Jason Casados, owner of the vape store and manufacturer Vapor Source, said that 97% of the products in its stores are flavored. It said it opened its first site in 2009 and will expand to eight sites. It is the American dream, he said, but with the rapid and sometimes extreme changes happening at all levels of government, I wake up every day wondering if I can continue to provide not only to my own immediate family, but also to my 41 staff members.

Others have compared it to the general alcohol ban a century ago. The ban has never worked in our country, and will not work in our state now, said James Howard, who said he represented his two steam stores in southern Colorado.

Grier Bailey, who represents convenience stores across the state, has warned that a flavor ban would potentially cost stores hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue. He predicted that neighboring states would not pass their own bans. All you do is generate sales that could be used to support local communities, local governments, local schools and send them to other states, he said. It makes absolutely no sense. This will dramatically increase sales on the black market and take money away from traditional retailers who really care about communities.

John Daley / CPR News

Amanda Wheeler, owner of a pair of vape stores in Colorado Springs, said flavors also play a key role in how electronic cigarettes help adult smokers quit.

If a person uses it as a nice pear flavor for example, it's something very nice that breaks this association with cigarettes, she told CP.

Wheeler is concerned that the ban would wipe out small vape shops while leaving the big tobacco companies still able to make and sell flavorings.

Still, Dr. Ricky Mohan, a pulmonologist at the University of Colorado medical school, said that some scientific papers suggest that if young people vaped the flavors, it would often lead to regular smoking. He said the bill could help prevent young people from getting into the habit. This bill can make a difference, a huge difference, he said. Because the aroma is the hook (to start with) and if the aroma is not there, there will be no incentive to engage.

A long list of groups came forward to testify in favor of the bill.

This included representatives from health groups, such as the Colorado Black Health Collaborative, and One Colorado, which is an LGBTQ rights group. The coalition argues that a flavor ban is essential to prevent the next generation from becoming addicted to dangerous and addictive products that cause heart, lung and brain disease and cause premature death. But people who testified said the ban would also help the African-American community in Colorado, where marketing around menthol cigarettes was ubiquitous.

This policy isn't about adults, it's about children, said Radke. Flavors do two things, they attract children and encourage adults to consume.

The bill gives the state the power to ban flavored cigarettes and tobacco that come in varieties like fruits, menthol, mint, wintergreen, chocolate, cocoa, vanilla , honey or any other candy, dessert, alcoholic beverage, herb or spice.

A retailer would be fined at increasing levels for several infractions. This includes $ 250 for a first offense during a 24 month period and $ 500 for a second offense during this period. If a retailer is caught selling a flavored tobacco product five or more times, he would face a fine of $ 15,000 and loss of the ability to sell tobacco or nicotine for at least a year.

Governor Jared Polis has yet to say whether he would sign the bill if it should be passed. A spokesperson said Polis remains committed to tackling the growing problem of adolescent vaping and looks forward to reviewing the bill.

In all, over 55 people signed up to testify.

Another bill this session would tighten regulations by requiring that each nicotine retailer have a state license, which would also involve checks to ensure that retailers are in compliance.