WASHINGTON — Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser signed into law an act that will prohibit the sale of flavored tobacco products in the district.
Nasir Cheema, who spoke to CSP before the mayor signed the act, said a ban would be very hard on convenience-store retailers. He has owned a Hillcrest BP store for more than 20 years in the district.
“There are a lot of other products people use that have some possible health issues, but it’s not like you are going to ban every single thing,” Cheema said. “It’s going to be a huge impact on our businesses.”
The Washington City Council approved the Flavored Tobacco Product Prohibition Amendment Act of 2021 on June 29 by an 8-to-5 vote before it reached Bowser’s desk. While Bowser said the act will “attack disparities in health outcomes,” some council members raised concerns over how banning menthol cigarettes will disproportionately affect people of color and the enforcement of the ban.
“We know that Black residents are disproportionately affected by tobacco use, and flavored tobacco, including menthol, continues to have a particularly insidious effect on our community,” Bowser’s statement on the signing read, in part. “Today, we take a hugely impactful step to reducing tobacco initiation and addiction in Washington, D.C.”
While Bowser’s signature effectively makes the bill an act, in Washington, an approved act of the council must be sent to the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate for a period of 30 days before becoming effective as law. During this period of review, Congress could enact into law a joint resolution disapproving the council’s act.
In addition to banning the sale of flavored tobacco products, with the exception of hookahs, the bill will also prohibit the sale and distribution of flavored tobacco products and electronic smoking devices within a quarter mile of a middle school or high school.
Cheema said he fears there will be more illegal sales with a ban, and customers will go to surrounding states, like Maryland, to get their menthol fill. While larger convenience-store retailers may be able to make up the revenue from foodservice sales, smaller city retailers like Cheema may be out of luck, he said.
“Small mom-and-pop stores and gas stations, we don’t’ have that luxury to come up with lost revenue,” Cheema said. “We just depend on cigarettes, sodas and chips.”
Other municipalities around the country, from Massachusetts to California, have passed or considered similar bans. In April, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it intends to make prohibiting menthol as a characterizing flavor in cigarettes one of its highest priorities. More than 19.5 million people are current smokers of menthol cigarettes, according to the FDA. Nearly 86% of African American smokers, 46% of Hispanic smokers, 39% of Asian smokers and 29% of white smokers use menthol cigarettes, the agency said.