Colorado Senate Approves County-Wide Flavor Bans

Last week, the Colorado Senate voted 21-14 in favor of S.B. 24-022, a bill that allows counties in the state to pass bans on the sales of flavored tobacco products and regulate the distribution of tobacco products.

While the bill itself wouldn’t ban the sale of flavored tobacco products, it would open the door to local bans, which are currently forbidden.

This is the second time in recent years that the Colorado General Assembly has moved towards allowing local control over tobacco regulation. In March 2019, H.B. 1033 was enacted, allowing Colorado cities, towns, and counties to increase the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21 and increase taxes and retailer licenses, according to Halfwheel. Previously, those actions were prevented via a preemption clause.

That law was signed by Gov. Jared Polis, who remains governor today. Two years ago, Polis, a Democrat, indicated that he opposed efforts to ban the sale of flavored tobacco products statewide, saying that he instead supported giving local communities the option to enact their own bans.

S.B. 24-022 now moves on to the House of Representatives.