Senate Democrats propose ‘smoking age’ of 21

A handful of Democratic Senators has proposed establishing a national “smoking age” that would ban the sale of tobacco to anyone under the age of 21.

Brian Schatz of Hawaii, Dick Durbin of Illinois and Sherrod Brown of Ohio introduced the plan in a press release Wednesday, citing public health as the driving force behind the bill they’ve proposed: the Tobacco to 21 Act.

“We know that the earlier smokers begin their unhealthy addiction to nicotine, the more likely they are to suffer from tobacco-related diseases or die,” Schatz said in the release. “This year, Hawai‘i (sic) became the first state in the nation to raise the minimum smoking age to 21. It was an historic public health achievement that we should adopt nationwide. By raising the minimum tobacco age of sale to 21 across the country, we can cut the number of new smokers each year; build a healthier, tobacco free America; and save lives.”

The bill’s co-sponsors include a roster of Democrats, with no Republicans signed on. The Democratic co-sponsors include Sens. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Barbara Boxer of California, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island.

The bill would designate the Department of Health and Human Services as the entity responsible for “conducting undercover compliance checks, performing retailer inspections, initiating enforcement actions for noncompliance, and taking any other measures appropriate to help ensure nationwide compliance.”

The bill also makes a provision for states and municipalities to establish their own “smoking age” tobacco bans — so long as those prohibitions are “at least as restrictive as the Federal law.”

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