By PATRICK ADRIAN
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WINDSOR, Vt. — Vermont legislation has enacted stricter regulations for tobacco products that will prevent Vermont youth access e-cigarettes, or vaping products, according to Alice Stewart of the Mount Ascutney Prevention Partnership. The new regulations will go into effect on Monday, July 1 and Sept. 1.
Stewart and Mount Ascutney’s Community Prevention Coordinator Courtney Hillhouse met with the Windsor Selectboard on Tuesday to discuss ways the town can decrease youth exposure to tobacco products through developing smoke-free town ordinances, which could include zoning restrictions for businesses to sell age-restricted products like tobacco to smoking bans in parks or at outdoor municipal events.
“The more you can cut off that youth access, the less they’re going to vape,” Stewart told the board. “Because right now it works like selling drugs, where kids get a large quantity of vaping products and are selling them to other kids.”
Stewart said that Windsor High School recently banned students from wearing hoodies because there are hoodies specially-designed to enable people to vape in public unnoticed.
“There was even an incident at Hartland Elementary School at the end of the year involving seventh graders,” she said. “So, it’s definitely happening here.”
Vermont legislators passed several laws this year to combat the rise of vaping, particularly among youth, many of which go into effect Monday, including a 92% tobacco tax that will apply to e-cigarettes, vaping liquids and devices, and accessories like vaping hoodies and device repair kids. Taxes on cigarettes in Vermont total $3.53 or about 44% of the cost, the ninth highest in the country.
Another law taking effect Monday will close an internet loophole that enabled youth to buy vaping products online. Stewart said that youth currently can go online, lie about their age to purchase vaping products, and often sell those to other youth. The new law will authorize the Vermont attorney general to go after companies that sell vaping products to minors.
On Sept. 1 the age restriction in Vermont to buy or use tobacco products will increase from age 18 to 21.
Windsor to consider smoking ordinances
A survey of Windsor residents conducted on Town Meeting Day in March found that 85% of Windsor residents surveyed would like Windsor parks and public lands to be smoke-free, and 93% support having outdoor events smoke-free, Hillhouse told the board.
Hillhouse and Stewart said they came to the selectboard meeting on request by selectboard chair Heather Prebish, because the town is currently looking to review town ordinances to provide an enforcement tool for addressing issues that affect general health and wellbeing.
Stewart told the board that “buffer zones” are one way that towns can use ordinances to limit youth access and exposure to age-restrictive products. Buffer-zones are laws that prevent businesses from selling age-restrictive products like marijuana, alcohol, tobacco or pornography within a specified proximity of certain properties, such as day care programs, churches or schools.
“The idea is that for a mile or half-mile around these places, you are creating a healthy bubble around this environment where kids frequent,” Stewart said.
The advantage of buffer-zones is that they still enable a municipality to have those businesses if they choose, but empower the town to designate them to certain locations.
Town Manager Tom Marsh said that the town has attempted past discussions about establishing smoke-free places and events but efforts always stopped when it came to how to enforce.
These ordinances do include enforceable fines and penalties for violating laws, though Marsh said their most effective mechanism is through “sending a message or tone for what is acceptable or unacceptable.”
“Maybe if you are smoking in Paradise Park and there’s a no-smoking sign, there’s a chance that someone is going to say something to you,” Marsh said.
Hillhouse said that, from her experience, people respond positively when you raise the issue in a non-confrontational way, as if assuming the person simply did not know rather than knowingly ignoring the rule.
“The people I informed were very receptive,” Hillhouse said.
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