Advancing Tobacco Free Communities Praises Governor's Plan to Regulate and Tax Vapor Products Used in E-Cigarettes

Advancing Tobacco Free Communities – Delaware, Otsego and Schoharie Counties (ATFC-DOS) welcomes Governor Cuomo’s Executive Budget proposal to include vapor products used in electronic cigarettes in the state’s Clean Indoor Air Act, which will make New York one of just a dozen states and territories to protect the public’s health by restricting vapor products use in all smoke-free venues.i Further, ATFC-DOS congratulates the Governor on his plans to tax the sale of vapor products and fully regulate them in the same manner as combustible tobacco products. E-cigarette use more than doubled from 2013 to 2014 among young adults 18-24 years of age nationwide.ii And, in 2014, more than half of young adult smokers in New York State used electronic nicotine delivery systems (electronic cigarettes).iii ATFC-DOS commends the Governor for his proposals which are in line with the U.S. Surgeon General’s recent calls to action in his report, “E-Cigarette Use Among Youth and Young Adults.“ The Surgeon General urges incorporating e-cigarettes and other vapor products into smoke-free policies and imposing taxes on product sales. In New York State, the average age of a new smoker is 13 years old and 90 percent of adult smokers say they first tried smoking by age 18. ATFC-DOS works with communities to make them healthier places in which to live, learn, work and play and to create positive changes to curb the number of youth under 18 who become new daily smokers. E-cigarettes differ from other tobacco products in part because they do not contain the tobacco leaf, but contain tobacco’s addictive drug, nicotine. Fully incorporating e-cigarettes into new and existing tobacco product regulations including clean air laws will deter youth use and prevent the addiction of another generation to nicotine. The New York State Department of Health’s Bureau of Tobacco Control funds Advancing Tobacco Free Communities – Delaware, Otsego and Schoharie Counties to increase support for New York State’s tobacco-free norm through youth action (Reality Check) and community engagement. Efforts are evidence-based, policy-driven, and cost-effective approaches that decrease youth tobacco use, motivate adult smokers to quit and eliminate exposure to secondhand smoke.