Tag: indiana

Court: Prohibition of Vapes in County Jail ‘Went too Far’

Credit: Methaphum
An attempt by county commissioners in the U.S. state of Indiana to regulate e-cigarette and nicotine use in the local jail went too far, the state’s Court of Appeals has affirmed.
In 2012, the Indiana Legislature prohibited smoking in places of employment, state government vehicles, public places, and within eight feet of an entrance to a public place or place or employment.
After passage of that legislation, the commissioners of Clinton County enacted an order prohibiting smoking in all county offices and places of employment, including the county jail, according to The Indiana Lawyer.
Then in 2019, the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office received a certificate from the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission authorizing it to sell e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches to inmates. The inmates began purchasing the products and using them while housed in the jail.
According to the sheriff’s office, “disciplinary incidents and property damages … significantly decreased” after it received the certification, and the sales were generating enough income to be used for educational programs, religious literature and extra training opportunities for the inmates.
However, in 2021, the county commissioners passed an order that prohibited e-cigarettes and any smokeless tobacco in all county offices and buildings. The sheriff’s office immediately stopped selling e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches at the jail.
But the sheriff’s office also filed a complaint for declaratory judgment in Montgomery Superior Court, arguing the commissioners were attempting to regulate the conduct of inmates, which exceeded their authority.
For their part, the commissioners claimed they had authority to enact the order based on Indiana’s Home Rule Law.
Both parties moved for summary judgment, and the trial court ruled in favor of the sheriff’s office. It also denied the commissioners’ subsequent motions to correct error and for relief from judgment based on newly discovered material evidence.
The commissioners appealed and the Court of Appeals affirmed.
“In circumstances like those before us, where the Sheriff’s Office is required to take reasonable precautions to protect the life, safety, and health of an inmate in the county jail, ‘county commissioners do not have control over the acts of a sheriff,’” Judge Melissa May wrote, citing Robins v. Harris, 740 N.E.2d 914, 919 (Ind. Ct. App. 2000). “While the Commissioners have the power to enact a general ordinance governing the use of e-cigarettes in county buildings under the Home Rule Act, the Commissioners do not have the authority to regulate the use of e-cigarettes in the county jail because that power is entrusted in the Sheriff’s Office pursuant to the Take Care Provision (Indiana Code § 36-2-13-5(a)(7)).”
March 14, 2023
Indiana Bill Seeks to Ban Vaping in Public Spaces

Credit: Katherine Welles
A new bill in the U.S. state of Indiana’s senate hopes to ban e-cigarettes and vapes inside public places.
Senate Bill 1561 has passed the senate executive committee and now heads to the full senate for further consideration.
The smoke-free Illinois act was passed in 2007. It prevents people from smoking within 15 feet of entrances and requires no smoking signs to be posted in public spaces, reports WCIA.
But since vaping has become popular, Sen. Julie Morrison wants to make sure e-cigarettes and vapes are included.
A doctor with OSF Healthcare says this could help prevent secondhand smoke from being in public air.
The governor of Indiana signed a bill last year that included provisions cutting the 25 percent tax that wholesalers were to be charged for closed-system vaping devices to 15 percent.
March 10, 2023
Indiana Cuts Vape Tax 40% Before New Tax Rules Start
Credit: Zimmy TWS
The governor of Indiana signed a bill last week that included provisions cutting the 25 percent tax that wholesalers were to be charged for closed-system vaping devices to 15 percent.
State lawmakers approved the higher rate last year for Indiana’s first tax on electronic cigarettes to start in July 2022. But the Legislature approved the lower rate with seven lines included in a 118-page bill on mostly technical tax law changes.
Sen. Travis Holdman of Markle, chairman of the Senate’s tax committee chairman, said the vaping device tax change was made to bring it in line with the 15 percent rate set last year for refillable vaping products, according to the Associated Press. Holdman said the intention was to have all vaping devices and products taxed the same.
Bryan Hannon of the American Cancer Society said the vaping device tax should be at least 20 percent to achieve parity with Indiana’s 99.5 cents-per-pack cigarette tax.
March 21, 2022
Indiana Bill Would Lower E-cigarette Excise Taxes
An excise tax on vaping products was set to take effect on July 1 in Indiana. A recently passed bill in the state’s Legislature, however, could lower those taxes before the new law goes into effect.
Credit: Adobe Stock / Luzitanija
Both the Indiana House and Senate have approved the measure that would reduce the tax on closed-system vaping products, such as disposable e-cigarettes, from 25 percent of the wholesale price to 15 percent.
Senate Bill 382 is likely headed to a House-Senate conference committee for minor negotiations, but the bill’s author expects the Legislature to send the bill to the governor. “I don’t anticipate any [significant] change. They approved it in the House; we’ll probably just leave it where it is,” said author Sen. Travis Holdman, told the Indianapoli s Business Journal.
Some lawmakers believe the tax rate for closed-system vaping products was set erroneously high last year; the reduction would match the 15 percent tax rate on the retail price of open-system products, such as refillable vaping pods. Under SB382, that rate would remain unchanged.
The tax reduction is part of a broader bill filled with minor tax corrections requested by the Indiana Department of Revenue and Gov. Eric Holcomb’s administration. Indiana’s tax on vaping products was created in the biennial budget near the end of last year’s legislative session. Lawmakers rejected a long-debated 50-cents-per-pack increase in the state’s cigarette tax, and in lieu of that, created the vaping-products tax.
Holdman said he does not know if the governor is on board with the vaping tax reduction’s being added to the Department of Revenue cleanup bill. A spokesperson for Holcomb said the governor will “review every piece of legislation that comes across his desk to make the best determination for all Hoosiers,” but declined to answer further questions about the tax reduction.
March 7, 2022
Indiana Governor Signs Budget Bill With New Vapor Taxes
Indiana’s $44 billion budget for fiscal years 2022 and 2023, signed by the governor, contains new taxes on electronic cigarettes. Gov. Eric Holcomb signed H.B. 1001 Thursday. The bill adopts new taxes on open and closed cartridges of e-cigarettes. The tax is 25 percent wholesale on closed systems like vaping pods and 15 percent retail on open systems like refillables.
Credit: DedMitay
The Senate had originally planned on a flat 10 percent tax at retailers, but that was highly criticized as being too low, according to WTHR.com .
“We are very pleased that the state legislature has recognized the importance of implementing a meaningful tax on vaping and e-liquids. We pushed back on the original Senate amount because it was not nearly enough to have an effect on discouraging Hoosier youth from taking up vaping, which too frequently leads to cigarette smoking for this group,” said Kevin Brinegar, president and CEO Indiana Chamber of Commerce. “Ultimately, Senate leadership recognized this as well and, working with House leaders, has put forth a strong tax system on vaping and e-liquids. Now, all of those products will be taxed on par with traditional tobacco ones, as they should be.”
The Senate rejected a 50-cents-per-pack increase in the state’s cigarette tax. The state’s 99.5-cents-per-pack rate was last raised in 2007. A group of health industry and other business representatives had been pushing for a $2-per-pack increase to tamper down on the state’s 21.1 percent smoking rate for adults.
“While the Indiana Chamber is still disappointed that there was very little interest in raising the cigarette tax this session, imposing the state’s first vaping and e-cigarette tax is a big step and will positively impact the health of many young Hoosiers in particular,” Brinegar said.
May 3, 2021
25% Wholesale Vapor Tax Clears Indiana Senate Hurdle
A bill in Indiana that will bring new taxes on vaping as well as a broad framework for disbursing future opioid litigation settlement cash is expected to be signed into law by Governor Eric Holcomb, today. It’s Indiana’s first-ever tax on e-cigarettes.
Credit: Adobe Stock / Luzitanija

The tax, which will take effect July 1, 2022, is split between wholesale and retail, with closed-system products like prefilled pods assessed 25 percent of the wholesale cost, and open-system products like bottled e-liquid being taxed at 15 percent of the retail price (a sales tax).
A previous version proposed a 10 cent-per-milliliter tax on vaping fluid and an additional 10 percent percent excise tax on e-cigarettes and vaping products.
Health advocates say the plan meets their goal of a tax rate comparable to the rate on traditional
cigarettes, according to wibc.com. Indiana State Medical Association president Roberto Darroca says doctors are
particularly concerned about discouraging teenagers from taking up vaping so they don’t get a
taste for nicotine and move on to traditional cigarettes.
April 23, 2021
Indiana Senate to Vote on 15% E-liquid Tax Today
The budget deal awaiting a final vote in Indiana today includes the state’s first-ever tax on e-cigarettes. Both the House and Senate had floated an extra 10 percent sales tax on e-liquids, but the final bill jacks that up to 15 percent. Prepackaged closed-pod cartridges like Juul will be taxed at 25 percent at the wholesale level.
Credit: Ken Shelton
Health advocates say the plan meets their goal of a tax rate comparable to the rate on traditional
cigarettes, according to WIBC.com. Indiana State Medical Association president Roberto Darroca says doctors are
particularly concerned about discouraging teenagers from taking up vaping so they don’t get a
taste for nicotine and move on to traditional cigarettes.
The Senate had flirted with the idea of taxing closed-pod cartridges based on the amount of liquid
they contained. Darroca says that would have been a mistake, and says negotiators did the right
thing in basing the taxes on price. Because pod cartridges contain a fraction of the liquid sold for
open systems, Darroca says a volume tax would have blown up the goal of making the vaping tax
comparable to taxes on traditional tobacco products.
The Indiana Chamber had gone farther, blasting the volume-based tax as worse than doing
nothing. President Kevin Brinegar says the Chamber supports the final version as a “big step” for
public health, though he and Darroca both say they’re disappointed the Senate blocked a
proposed cigarette tax hike.
April 22, 2021
Indiana is One Step Closer to Taxing Vapor Products
Indiana is a little closer to placing a tax on vapor products for the first time at $1.56 for a two-pod package. The U.S. state’s legislature also hope to the tax on combustible cigarettes to $2 a pack. A preliminary estimate projects the increase would bring in $278 million.
Credit: Photo Mix
The committee had put off a vote Monday to draft language specifying 40 percent of the money raised — an estimated $112 million — would go to Medicaid, according to Inside Indiana Business. Crown Point Republican Julie Olthoff, the bill’s author, says smoking-related health problems cost Medicaid more than five times that much.
Indianapolis Democrats Robin Shackleford and Greg Porter still voted no. They want all the money earmarked for a new public health fund. Republicans say there’s a separate bill addressing that. Committee chairman Brad Barrett (R-Richmond) notes both bills are headed for the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, which will decide where the money goes in the context of the full budget. He says the health committee vote puts the panel on record as urging that the money be spent on health, not just dumped into the state’s general fund.
Brookston Republican Don Lehe also voted no.
Even if the full House passes it, the bill faces a tougher climb in the Senate. In the last five years, senators have killed three bills to either raise the cigarette tax or tax e-cigarettes.
February 8, 2021
Indiana Introduces Annual Bill to Boost Vapor Tax
The Indiana state legislature has begun to debate raising taxes on vaping products … again. The annual introduction centers on a proposed tax rate of $1.56 on a two-pod pack, the equal nicotine content to a pack of combustible cigarettes.
Credit: Davis Mark
Indiana’s traditional cigarette tax of just under a dollar a pack is the 13th lowest in the nation. Legislators are considering a bill to double it, and tax e-cigarettes for the first time, according to an article on wibc.com. Marion County health director Virginia Caine says it’s critical to include e-liquids in the bill.
She says vaping among teenagers has doubled in the last two years, wiping out any progress the state has made in reducing teenage smoking. Recent U.S. CDC reports say that teen smoking rates declined in 2020. Mason Odle, owner of Just Vapors in Fishers, says he fully supports raising the cigarette tax, but argues e-liquids shouldn’t be included.
He contends e-cigarettes are a more popular and effective means of quitting smoking than FDA-approved products like nicotine gum or patches. That brought a fierce pushback from health officials, who point out the FDA has specifically banned vape manufacturers from marketing their product as a stop-smoking aid until they produce more evidence that it works. And Caine says there are serious concerns about lung damage from vaping.
Former Libertarian candidate for governor Don Rainwater argues increasing cigarette taxes would punish store owners at a time when they’re already reeling from the coronavirus pandemic. But the main objection from House Public Health Committee members centered on the lack of a specific plan for the proceeds from the tax. A vote has been put off till next week to add language earmarking the money for health programs.
Governor Holcomb and House and Senate leaders have all said a cigarette tax hike isn’t on their agenda, without flatly ruling out the possibility. The House approved an increase in 2016 and 2017, and a vape tax in 2019. All three times, the proposals died in the Senate.
February 3, 2021
Indiana to Take Up E-liquid Flavor Ban Again in 2021
The state of Indiana will again try to ban flavored vaping products in its next legislative session. Senate Bill 45, authored by Sen. Ronald Grooms, will be on the the agenda when the 2021 session begins on January 4, at 1:30 pm.
Credit: Davis Mark
The bill defines “flavored e-liquid” as e-liquid that contains a constituent ingredient that is added for the purpose of imparting a characterizing flavor. The bill would also make it illegal for any manufacturer, distributor, or retailer to manufacture, distribute, or market flavored e-liquid in Indiana.
The bill would prohibit the sale of flavored e-liquid to a person of any age and authorizes the state’s alcohol and tobacco commission to investigate and enforce penalties for certain violations involving flavored e-liquid.
Indiana has previously tried to ban flavored vaping products without success. In early March, the Indiana House of Representatives approved a bill to ban flavored e-liquids 213-195, but it failed to gain approval in the senate.
December 30, 2020