Illinois has launched the Cannabis Research Institute (CRI), a first-of-its-kind center in the American Midwest for innovative pot studies.
The new research hub announced last week will be a joint venture between the State of Illinois, the City of Chicago, and Discovery Partners Institute (DPI), part of the University of Illinois system.
The institute’s aim is to develop a comprehensive body of data and research to educate the public about the socio-economic and scientific impacts of pot production and usage.
The institute plans to undertake broad research covering everything from crop management to social impacts and health and wellness, media outlets report.
Example topics will include the efficacy of pot and cannabis extracts for treating medical ailments such as inflammation and anxiety; the impact of legalization on the community and broader society; public health ramifications of legalizing adult-use cannabis; and the improvement of pot plants through controlled environmental conditions.
To help ensure the CRI accomplishes those goals the DPI will be forming and leading a research team comprised of different communities, research institutions, businesses and government authorities.
The Cook County Board has approved a ban on selling flavored tobacco products in suburban Cook County. Cook County is the largest county in Illinois and contains 134 municipalities in its region, the City of Chicago being the most well-known.
Passed by a unanimous voice vote, the ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products applies to all vaping cartridges and includes menthol flavors, according to Audacy.
Under the ordinance, any of the reported 42 licensed tobacco retailers in unincorporated Cook could face a $250 fine the first time they are caught selling flavored vapes.
“Our statutory authority only applies to unincorporated Cook. Those businesses that are located in unincorporated Cook will be impacted,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said. “When we make legislation of this sort, that’s where it applies. Local municipalities can enact their own legislation should they wish.”
A $23.8 million settlement has been reached between Juul Labs Inc and the City of Chicago over claims that the e-cigarette maker deceptively marketed its products and for selling vaping products to underage users, the Chicago mayor’s office said on Friday.
The vaping company is currently facing thousands of lawsuits filed across the United States over claims on its marketing practices and for contributing to rising tobacco use among youth, according to Reuters.
In the settlement, Chicago said Juul has denied and continues to deny any wrongdoing and liability in connection with the design, manufacture, production, advertisement, marketing, distribution, sale, use, and performance of its products.
According to the settlement, the company has agreed to pay the city $2.8 million within 30 days of the execution of the agreement.
Chicago would receive an additional $21 million payment later this year under the current schedule and may potentially receive up to $750,000 in additional, court-awarded payments, the Chicago mayor’s office said.
Altria Group Inc, which had a stake in Juul Labs valued at $12.8 billion in 2018, exchanged its investment in Juul, last valued at $250 million, for some of the vaping company’s heated tobacco intellectual property.
Altria Group then immediately announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire NJOY Holdings for approximately $2.75 billion in cash. The transaction terms include an additional $500 million in cash payments that are contingent upon regulatory outcomes with respect to certain NJOY products.
U.S. Customs and Border Protections (CBP) officers at O’Hare International Airport this week seized 77,400 Rick and Morty vape pens from China that were destined to a distribution company in Georgia. CBP officers found the popular cartoon characters on the packaging and suspected they violated copyright and trademark laws.
Credit: CBP
Authorities called Warner Bros. and confirmed the company didn’t license their Rick and Morty copyright for vape pens, according to a press release. CBP Import Specialists determined the shipments of vape pens was infringing upon the “Rick and Morty” copyright. The MSRP for the bootleg pens was valued at $1.55 million.
“Often CBP seizes vape pens because they violate FDA guidelines, but these parcels violate copyright laws which adds to the charges and complexity of the case,” said Shane Campbell, Area Port Director-Chicago. “Counterfeit products are unsafe for consumers, harm the economy, damage the revenue and image of the companies, and could cost American jobs.”
The City of Chicago has filed a lawsuit against Equte LLC, parent to Vapes.com, for “marketing and selling flavored vaping products.” The company allegedly marketed its products to youth, alongside selling flavored products. Four months ago, the Chicago City Council banned the sale of flavored vaping products favored by teens, but exempting flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes.
Credit Emily Ralph
The latest in a string of city lawsuits against the e-cigarette industry follows an investigation by the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection. It identified the two companies as having violated the flavored tobacco ban, according to the Chicago Sun Times.
“E-cigarettes are unhealthy and addictive, and businesses deliberately target young people in the hope they’ll develop lifelong customers,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot was quoted as saying in a news release. “The City of Chicago’s message to vaping companies is clear: If you break the law, we will go after you, especially if you try to sell to our youth.”
O’Shea originally championed a much stronger, citywide ban on all flavored tobacco products. He was forced to settle for less — a ban on “flavored liquid nicotine products” — after running into a buzz-saw of opposition from gas stations, convenience and tobacco stores. They accused O’Shea of kicking them when they’re down, with their businesses hurting during the pandemic.
O’Shea could not be reached for comment. The press release quoted him as saying that this lawsuit “not only takes these companies to task, but sends a clear message to anyone who thinks they can push vaping products onto our kids and get away with it.”
A suburb of Chicago is considering a temporary ban on the sale of vaping products. The board for the Village of Vernon Hills voted Monday to draft a moratorium that, depending on the formal language approved, could limit the types of flavored tobacco and vape products businesses can apply to sell for in town.
Credit: Vaporesso
The decision was part of a broader discussion to possibly ban the sale of such products within the village, according to a story in the Chicago Tribune. Board members opted to put that discussion on the back burner until the board and residents can meet in person to hear out both sides of the issue, choosing a moratorium as a stopgap until the discussion could take place.
At the meeting, village staff presented information that broke down what businesses would be impacted if such an ordinance were passed. Village Manager Mark Fleischhauer reported that 15 businesses within town are licensed to sell tobacco and vaping products.
About half those businesses sell flavored products, with one business in particular, Artisan’s Vaping, selling it as their main focal point, Fleischhauer said. While nothing is formal on any ban, trustees kicked around the idea of a grandfather clause if such a thing materialized.
As for the moratorium, officials said there are a few potential ways the ordinance can be written. The range of potential products that could be impacted includes flavored tobacco, flavored vaping or e-cigarettes, to vaping products as a whole, officials at the meeting said.
Trustees will discuss the options at their next committee of the whole meeting, with an eye on passing the moratorium at the board meeting that follows.
The discussion to potentially ban flavored tobacco products was sparked at the village’s last meeting in December, where they received a presentation from a resident that cited the harms and risks associated with using said products, particularly with youth.
During the meeting Monday, Trustee James Schultz took issue with the possibility of a ban, saying the product is legal in the state. He added that the village has done a good job of not allowing flavored and vaping products to be sold to minors.
“Does that mean we shouldn’t be issuing liquor licenses because more people die and start drinking at a young age?” Schultz said. “This is a bridge too far for me.”
The board also received a comment on the matter from a resident. The comment stated it was unfair for a discussion of a potential ban to be taking place without those who sell vape products knowing or having a chance to give their thoughts.
The City of Chicago attempted to ban all flavors of vaping products except tobacco and menthol. It has been sent back to committee. The cities of Beverly Hills and Manhattan Beach, California were the first two cities in the U.S. to ban the sale of vapor products.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has filed a lawsuit against e-cigarette maker Juice Man, alleging deceptive marketing practices aimed at enticing youth.
The lawsuit was filed Thursday in Cook County against the California-based company, according to a story by the Associated Press (AP).
The move follows a similar Illinois lawsuit in December against Juul, the nation’s biggest e-cigarette maker.
The Juice Man lawsuit claims the company used child-friendly flavors like cotton candy and used social media platforms with cartoons and giveaway competitions to entice young people.
E-cigarettes create an aerosol, commonly called vapor, made of particulate matter. The vapor typically contains propylene glycol, glycerin, nicotine, flavors, and traces of toxicants, carcinogens, heavy metals, and metal nanoparticles. Its exact composition varies, and depends on several factors including user behavior, according to wikipedia.
The U.S. City of Chicago has its sights set on flavors for vaping products. On Friday, the Chicago City Council Health Committee passed a heavily revised version its tobacco flavor ban. What started out as an attempt to ban the sale of all flavored tobacco product has been stripped down to a ban on only flavored vaping products.
This means that Chicago would allow menthol and mint combustible cigarettes, as well as flavored cigars and pipe tobaccos. The full council is scheduled to discuss the ordinance during its meeting on Wednesday, the first day that all vaping products that haven’t submitted a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will be removed from shelves.
The ban had a good amount of support in its original form, garnering the support of 21 of the city’s 50 aldermen upon its introduction in June, as well as the support of Mayor Lori Lightfoot, according to a story by Patrick Lagreid on Halfwheel.com. However, it was also met with opposition from members who feared that the ban would drive sales of tobacco products to other municipalities and have an adverse effect on businesses.
The original bill generated a large outcry from retailers who said smokers simply would cross into the suburbs to buy flavored cigarettes and from some aldermen who have long complained that higher prices and stricter restrictions on tobacco sales in Chicago propel a gang-controlled black market in those products.
The city also is dealing with a budget crisis due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it remains to be seen if the full council will support the ban if it means the loss of revenue into city coffers. Some aldermen have called for stricter enforcement of existing sales regulations as opposed to an outright ban.
A proposal to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes and other tobacco products in Chicago stalled in a City Council committee after running into an avalanche of opposition.
Owners of gas stations, convenience stores and tobacco stores — and trade groups representing them — showed up in force at the virtual meeting to accuse the City Council’s Committee on Health and Human Relations of “kicking them when they’re down,” according to an article in the Sun-Times.
They argued small businesses are fighting for survival after a double-whammy: first, the coronavirus pandemic; then, damage during civil unrest, which came when many were “woefully under-insured.”
The last thing they need is “legislative over-reach” that would cost them even more business, they said, noting that tobacco products account for 40% of revenue for a typical Chicago gas station — and that 52% of that tobacco revenue comes from flavored tobacco products.
“This is the equivalent to kicking this industry while they’re down. You not only lose out on flavored tobacco sales to adults. You lose a significant driver of other business. When people buy tobacco, they buy other things. So the business loses out on all of those sales. The city loses out on all of the revenue,” said Tanya Triche Dawood, vice president and general counsel for the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, the article states.
Dawood acknowledged there is “absolutely … an issue with teen vaping,” but it can be solved by “identifying products that are attractive to teens” and banning those — not by “taking products away from adults” like “tobacco- and menthol-flavored vapes,” she said.
“I’m not aware of any data that shows that pipe tobacco is gaining in popularity with teens. Neither is chew. Or even menthol cigarettes. But all of these products are included in this proposal,” Dawood said.
