A lawmaker from the Big Island of Hawaii is proposing legislation that could be ground breaking regarding the sale of cigarettes. Democratic state Rep. Richard Creagan has offered a bill that will incrementally increase the minimum age to buy cigarettes until there was, for all practical purposes, a ban on their sale in the island state.
The Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported that Creagan has proposed legislation that aims to make the state the first to prohibit the sale of cigarettes. Under his bill, the minimum smoking age would increase to 30 in 2020, an then to 40 in 2021, and then to 50 in 2022, and then to 60 in 2023, and finally 100 in 2024.
The measure wouldn’t apply to e-cigarettes, cigars or chewing tobacco.
The Democratic state representative is a physician. He said taxes and other regulations have slowed cigarette use but haven’t stopped it, and he wants to get them completely off the store shelves.
Rep. Creagan told the newspaper he doesn’t think his legislation over-reaches. The state is obligated to “protect the public’s health,” he said.
Hawaii currently allows cigarettes to be sold to anyone 21 or older.
“Basically, we essentially have a group who are heavily addicted — in my view, enslaved by a ridiculously bad industry — which has enslaved them by designing a cigarette that is highly addictive, knowing that it highly lethal. And, it is,” the Tribune-Herald quotes Creagan as saying.
He said the bill is structured the way it is to help its chances of surviving court challenges.
What do you think about this proposed legislation from Rep. Creagan? Do you support it, or are you against it? Do you think that it could be duplicated in other states?
Let us know what you think about this controversial issue regarding cigarette sales in America. We look forward to seeing your comments in the section below this article.
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