This overview summarizes state tobacco control laws in effect in all 50 states and the District of Columbia in the different areas covered by State Legislated Actions on Tobacco Issues (SLATI).
A. Restrictions on Smoking in Public Places and Workplaces
49 states and the District of Columbia have laws restricting or prohibiting smoking in some or all public places and workplaces. Wyoming has a policy that restricts smoking in some state government buildings. * 28 states - Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin - and the District of Columbia prohibit smoking in almost all public places and workplaces, including restaurants and bars. Twenty of these states and the District of Columbia have fully included e-cigarettes in their laws. * Alaska prohibits smoking in virtually all public places and workplaces, including restaurants and bars, but allows local communities to opt-out of the law under certain conditions. The law includes e-cigarettes as well. * New Hampshire and North Carolina prohibit smoking in some public places, including all restaurants and bars. The restrictions in New Hampshire also apply to e-cigarettes. * Six states - Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana and Tennessee - prohibit smoking in most public places and workplaces, including restaurants, but exempt small workplaces, stand-alone bars and/or casinos. The restrictions in Florida and Tennessee also apply to e-cigarettes. * The remaining 13 states prohibit smoking in some, but not all public places and workplaces and/or limit smoking indoors to designated areas or rooms. In addition: * 12 states partially or totally prevent (preempt) local communities from passing laws/ordinances restricting smoking stronger than state law.
B. Tobacco Excise Taxes
Taxes on Cigarettes: All 50 states and the District of Columbia impose an excise tax on cigarettes. These taxes range from a high of $5.35 per pack in New York to a low of $0.17 per pack in Missouri. The national average for state cigarette excise taxes (as of January 1, 2024) is $1.93 per pack. * In 2023, New York was the only state that increased its state cigarette tax. * In 2022, no states increased their state cigarette taxes. Taxes on Tobacco Products Other Than Cigarettes: All 50 states and the District of Columbia have excise taxes on at least some tobacco products other than cigarettes. As of January 1, 2024: * In 22 states and the District of Columbia, the excise tax is calculated as a percentage of the wholesale sales price to retailers, the manufacturer's invoice price or the price at which the tobacco entered the state. * 28 states tax some or all tobacco products by weight of the product. * 30 states and the District of Columbia have established separate taxes on electronic cigarettes and/or e-liquid. Nine states tax by weight of the e-cigarette liquid used in the product while 16 states and DC tax by percentage of the wholesale or retail price or another non-weight-based taxation method. Five states have a combination of weight-based and non-weight-based taxation methods depending on the type of e-cigarette. In addition: * 8 states – Connecticut, Colorado, Kentucky, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Utah and Washington – reduce the tax on cigarettes and/or tobacco products by a certain percentage if the product receives a modified risk designation from FDA. * 9 states – Arkansas, Connecticut, Idaho, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island and Wisconsin – have placed caps on their taxes on some or all cigars.
C. Tobacco Product Sales Restrictions
Age Restrictions on Sales of Tobacco Products: Federal law prohibits the sale of all tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes to persons under age 21. Retailers are required to verify a person’s age by photographic identification containing the person’s date of birth unless the person is over 26 years of age. In addition, all 50 states and the District of Columbia prohibit the sale of tobacco products to people under a certain age. As of January 1, 2024, 41 states and the District of Columbia set the minimum sales age at 21 years old; Mississippi set the minimum sales age at 21 for some tobacco products and 18 for others; one state sets the minimum sales age at 19 years old and 7 states set the minimum sales age at 18 years old. Also as of January 1, 2024: * 42 states and the District of Columbia require retailers to post signs at or near the point of purchase stating that selling tobacco products to underage persons is illegal. 37 states and the District of Columbia extend this requirement to electronic cigarettes and related products. * 27 states and the District of Columbia require a person/retail store selling tobacco products to check the identification of a purchaser who appears to be under a certain age. Twenty-six of these states extend this requirement to electronic cigarettes and related products. In addition, Mississippi requires only sellers of electronic cigarettes and related products to check identification. Underage Purchase/Possession/Use of Tobacco Products: As of January 1, 2024: * 33 states and the District of Columbia prohibit the purchase or attempted purchase of tobacco products by underage individuals. 32 states and the District of Columbia also prohibit this for electronic cigarettes and related products. * 32 states and the District of Columbia prohibit underage individuals from possessing and/or using tobacco products. 30 states and the District of Columbia also prohibit this for electronic cigarettes and related products. * Connecticut, Minnesota and South Carolina only prohibit misrepresentation of age using a false ID for tobacco products and e-cigarettes. Penalties for violation of the above laws often include fines and/or alternative penalties like performing community service, attending smoking education/cessation programs and/or suspension of a driver’s license or learner’s permit. Note: Penalizing children has not been proven to be an effective technique to reduce underage tobacco usage. In fact, penalties may adversely affect existing programs that are proven to be effective and are required, such as compliance checks utilizing young people. It also may result in discriminatory enforcement by law enforcement against communities of color. Placement of Tobacco Products: Federal regulations require retailers to sell cigarettes and smokeless tobacco (but not cigars and other tobacco products) only in a direct, face-to-face exchange between the retailer and consumer. This means self-service displays of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco are prohibited except in facilities where the retailer ensures that no person younger than 18 is permitted to enter at any time. In addition, as of January 1, 2024: * 34 states and the District of Columbia have laws restricting customer access to cigarettes and/or tobacco products in retail stores. * 24 of these states also restrict customer access to electronic cigarettes and related products. Four of these states - Connecticut, Michigan, Tennessee and Washington - restrict customer access to e-cigarettes only. * Thirteen states - Delaware, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas and Utah - prohibit customers from having direct access to all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes in retail stores. Almost all of the above laws have an exception for retail stores that primarily sell tobacco products and/or electronic cigarettes, but definitions for these retail stores vary. Non-Face-to-Face Sales of Tobacco Products: As of January 1, 2024, 46 states place restrictions on non-face-to-face sales of cigarettes and/or tobacco products. Thirty-three of these 46 states extend some or all of these same restrictions to electronic cigarettes. Restrictions in two of these 46 states apply to electronic cigarettes only. Fourteen of these 46 states - Arizona, Connecticut, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont and Washington -- prohibit shipment of cigarettes and/or tobacco products except to certain specified entities. State Preemption of Local Tobacco Product Sales Laws: Twenty-six states partially or totally prevent (preempt) local communities from passing stronger local laws/ordinances concerning tobacco product sales. In the case of six additional states – California, Massachusetts, Missouri, North Dakota, Texas and Wyoming – limited preemption exists for small areas of their youth access laws.
D. Restrictions on Distribution of Tobacco Product Samples and Minimum Sales Amounts for Tobacco Products
Tobacco Product Samples: Federal regulations prohibit free samples of all tobacco products except smokeless tobacco and free samples of smokeless tobacco products are limited to certain age-restricted venues under several conditions. In addition, as of January 1, 2024, 24 states and the District of Columbia have laws restricting where free samples of tobacco products can be distributed to the general public or virtually prohibit the free distribution of tobacco products entirely. * Minnesota and Massachusetts prohibit the sampling of most tobacco products entirely except for single-serving samples distributed in tobacco stores. Both states' restrictions apply to e-cigarettes and related products too. * New Mexico prohibits free samples of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, without the express written approval of the state enforcement agency. * Nebraska prohibits samples, coupons and rebate offers for smokeless tobacco products. * Oregon prohibits giving samples of smokeless tobacco products to persons under age 21 and prohibits sampling in places/areas where persons under 21 are allowed to enter. * Texas prohibits the distribution of free samples or coupons for free samples of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes completely but allows people over 21 years of age to receive coupons for discounted products. * Texas and Washington prohibit the redemption of coupons for sample cigarettes and tobacco products through the mail or courier delivery. Both states restrictions apply to e-cigarettes and related products too. * 6 states – California, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, Utah and Wisconsin – and the District of Columbia prohibit giving away samples of cigarettes and/or some or all tobacco products except in specific locations such as places inaccessible to underage persons, and/or in a manufacturer's place of business. Connecticut, New York, Utah and Wisconsin as well as the District of Columbia extend this sampling restriction to electronic cigarettes and related products. * 5 states - Hawaii, Idaho, New Hampshire, Tennessee and Washington - prohibit giving away samples of tobacco products in many public places. Idaho, New Hampshire and Tennessee extend this sampling restriction to electronic cigarettes and related products as well. * The remaining 7 states - Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and South Dakota - prohibit sampling within a certain distance of schools or other facilities primarily used by children often when persons under a certain age are using them. Six of these states - Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and South Dakota - apply the same restrictions to electronic cigarettes or related products. All 50 states and the District of Columbia have laws prohibiting the distribution of tobacco products to persons under a certain age. Minimum Tobacco Product Sales Amounts: Federal regulations prohibit manufacturers, distributors or retailers from selling or distributing any cigarette package that contains fewer than 20 cigarettes. Retailers are also prohibited from breaking or otherwise opening any cigarette or smokeless tobacco package to sell or distribute individual cigarettes or any quantity of cigarette tobacco or smokeless tobacco that is smaller than the smallest package distributed by the manufacturer for individual consumer use. In addition, as of January 1, 2024, 31 states and the District of Columbia prohibit selling cigarettes in packs of less than 20 and/or as single cigarettes. Of those: * 14 states – Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Montana, New Jersey, Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont and West Virginia - and the District of Columbia explicitly prohibit cigarette sales in packs of less than 20 and as single cigarettes. * 11 states – Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Kentucky, New York, North Dakota, Tennessee and Utah - prohibit cigarette sales in packs of less than 20, but do not include language explicitly prohibiting sales of single cigarettes. * 6 states - Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania - prohibit sales of single cigarettes, but do not include language prohibiting cigarette sales in packs of less than 20. In addition, among all 50 states and the District of Columbia: * 27 states require cigarettes and sometimes other tobacco products to be sold in their original packaging often as placed there by the manufacturer. Among these states: * 1 state, Idaho, makes all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes subject to this requirement; * 14 states make some or most tobacco products, including in five of these states e-cigarettes subject to this requirement; * 12 states make only cigarettes subject to this requirement; * 10 states prohibit sales of roll-your-own tobacco in an individual package or container that contains less than 0.6 ounces of tobacco.
E. Restrictions on Sales of Tobacco Products in Vending Machines
Federal regulations require retailers to sell all tobacco products only in a direct, face-to-face exchange between the retailer and consumer. This means sales from vending machines selling tobacco products are prohibited except in facilities where the retailer ensures that no person younger than 18 is permitted to enter at any time. In addition, as of January 1, 2024, 48 states and the District of Columbia have laws restricting the placement of tobacco product vending machines; only New Hampshire and New Jersey do not. * Idaho, South Carolina and Vermont completely prohibit the sale of tobacco products through vending machines. Idaho and South Carolina extends this ban to electronic cigarettes and related products as well. * 25 states prohibit cigarette and/or tobacco product vending machines everywhere except for bars, taverns and other places where underage persons are not permitted by law. Seventeen of these states extend these restrictions to electronic cigarettes and related products. * 7 states prohibit tobacco product vending machines in most places where underage persons are allowed access but have a few exceptions i.e. for certain workplaces. Five of these states extend these restrictions to electronic cigarettes and related products. * Nevada prohibits cigarette vending machines except in public areas where people under 21 years of age are prohibited from loitering. * 12 states and the District of Columbia otherwise restrict vending machine access or location. All 12 of these states and the District of Columbia extend these restrictions to electronic cigarettes and related products. Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia require owners, operators and/or supervisors of cigarettes and/or tobacco product vending machines to post warning signs on the machines advising of age restrictions for purchase or sales. * Alaska has a sign posting requirement only for vending machines located in private workplaces. * Illinois, Indiana, Rhode Island and Texas require text health warning signs to be posted on or near vending machines either in addition to or instead of warning signs about selling to underage persons. * 15 of the above states and the District of Columbia extend their sign posting requirement to vending machines selling electronic cigarettes and related products.
F. Licensing/Permitting Requirements for Tobacco Products
All 50 states and the District of Columbia require the licensing of certain entities that sell, distribute or manufacture tobacco products. More specifically as of January 1, 2024: * 40 states and the District of Columbia require retailers that sell cigarettes to obtain a license/permit either from the state or the county/city where they do business; 37 states and DC require the same of retailers of other tobacco products; and 29 states and the District of Columbia require the same of retailers of electronic cigarettes. * All 50 states and the District of Columbia require distributors and/or wholesalers of cigarettes to obtain a state license/permit; 47 states and DC require the same of distributors and/or wholesalers of other tobacco products; and 21 states as well as the District of Columbia require the same of distributors/wholesalers of electronic cigarettes. The requirement for other tobacco product wholesalers/distributors to obtain a license/permit in Georgia only applies to cigars and loose/smokeless tobacco. Laws in 32 states and the District of Columbia include provisions that penalize a retailer who furnishes tobacco products to underage persons by a possible suspension or revocation of their license/permit or prohibit a retail store from selling, generally after multiple offenses. In 27 of these states and the District of Columbia retailers that sell electronic cigarettes and related products are subject to these license/permit suspension or revocation penalties.
G. Smoking Protection Laws
Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia have passed some form of smoker protection law that makes smokers a protected class legally, which means businesses are prohibited from making decisions about hiring, compensation, etc. based on an employees’ use or non-use of tobacco products. Note: The American Lung Association does not support elevating smokers to a protected class legally.
H. Advertising and Promotion
Twelve states and the District of Columbia have some state restrictions on tobacco product, including e-cigarette advertising and promotion. Some of these advertising restrictions may be part of state law but not enforced due to a 2001 Supreme Court decision striking down advertising restrictions in Massachusetts. * Alabama prohibits retailers or manufacturers of electronic nicotine delivery systems or alternative nicotine products as defined from advertising in certain locations or in certain ways. * California restricts tobacco advertising in all state-owned buildings and billboard advertising within a 1,000 feet of any K-12 public school or playground. * Colorado prohibits e-cigarette retailers from advertising in a manner that is visible outside the retail location. * Delaware prohibits advertising any tobacco products within 200 feet of any public or private school but does not prohibit the display of any message or advertisement opposing the use of tobacco products. In addition, any such message or advertisement may not contain the brand name of any tobacco product or the name of any tobacco company. * The District of Columbia prohibits all tobacco advertising on the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit System, which operates its bus and subway systems. * Illinois prohibits retailers, distributors and manufacturers of e-cigarettes from advertising in certain ways. They also require health warnings to be posted on smokeless tobacco billboard advertising. * Kentucky prohibits tobacco billboard advertising within 500 feet of schools. * Michigan and West Virginia require health warnings to be posted on smokeless tobacco billboard advertising. * New Mexico prohibits manufacturers from producing and distributors and retailers from selling tobacco products that are knowingly attractive to minors as defined. * New York prohibits exterior tobacco product, including e-cigarette advertising within a 1,500 feet from K-12 schools, except the distance is 500 feet in New York City. E-cigarette company sponsorship by brand name is also prohibited. * Texas prohibits tobacco advertising within 1,000 feet of a church, public or private school and requires purchasers of tobacco advertising to pay a fee of 10% of the gross sales price of any tobacco advertising. Certain e-cigarettes attractive to underage persons, such as that depict certain cartoon characters or are designed as food or drink items also can't be marketed or sold. * Utah prohibits the display on any billboard, streetcar, sign, bus or placard of an advertisement for tobacco products, except that dealers in tobacco products may have a sign at their place of business indicating that they sell tobacco.
I. Tobacco Product Disclosure
Six states require tobacco product disclosure information. Requirements include: * Massachusetts and Texas require tobacco manufacturers to disclose any added constituent of tobacco products other than tobacco, water and reconstituted tobacco sheet made wholly from tobacco. * Massachusetts, Texas and Utah require disclosure of the nicotine yield for each brand of cigarettes. * Minnesota and Utah require tobacco manufacturers to disclose any of the following substances in their unburned or burned states: ammonia or any compound of ammonia, arsenic, cadmium, formaldehyde and lead. * New Hampshire requires its state Department of Health and Human Services to obtain from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health a list of additives for each brand of tobacco products sold. * Connecticut required its Commissioner of Public Health to issue regulations concerning how the commissioner will obtain nicotine yield ratings for each brand of tobacco product.
J. Tobacco Divestment
Massachusetts passed a state law to prohibit new public pension funds from investing in stocks, securities or other obligations of any company that derives more than 15 percent of its revenue from the sale of tobacco products and requires divestment of existing investments. In Minnesota, the Minnesota State Investment Board passed a resolution in 1998 requiring all equity managers to divest shares of any company which obtained more than 15 percent of its revenues from the manufacture of consumer tobacco products, which was accomplished by June 30, 2001.
K. Tobacco Liability
Industry Protection: Thirty-five states have enacted legislation that places a cap on the bond required of a defendant to appeal lawsuit judgments that award money damages to plaintiffs. Of these states: * 14 states apply these caps on appeal bonds to all lawsuit judgments. * 14 states apply the caps only to lawsuit judgments involving companies that signed the Master Settlement Agreement/separate state tobacco settlement. * Florida, Hawaii and Oklahoma - have separate laws/parts of laws applying a cap to both tobacco settlement signatories and other lawsuit parties; Florida applies the cap on all parties to punitive damages only. * 4 states - Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky and Mississippi – apply caps to the punitive damages portion of a lawsuit judgment only. The amount of the cap on bonds to appeal lawsuit money judgments varies from state to state: * 3 states – California, Minnesota and Oregon – have capped the appeal bond required at $150 million; * Alabama has set the limit at $125 million; * 8 states – Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin – have set the limit at $100 million; * Tennessee has set the limit at $75 million; * 7 states – Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, Ohio and Rhode Island – have set the limit at $50 million. * 11 states – Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Virginia have imposed a limit of $25 million. * Hawaii has set the limit at $150 million for Master Settlement Agreement signatories and $25 million for all other lawsuit judgments. * West Virginia has set the limit at $100 million each for compensatory and punitive damages. * Idaho has set the level at $1 million for punitive damages only, while a judgment in South Carolina and punitive damages judgment in Oklahoma is automatically stayed upon appeal. Almost all of these laws include an exception for intentional dissipation of assets by the defendant. No appeal bond is required to appeal a lawsuit judgment in five states - Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont.
L. Use of Settlement Dollars
Forty-six states and the District of Columbia receive annual payments from certain cigarette companies as part of the tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (MSA), a lawsuit settlement signed in 1998 between Attorneys General in those states and the companies. Four states – Florida, Minnesota, Mississippi and Texas – settled their lawsuits separately with the cigarette companies prior to the MSA. States account for and use the annual payments from the MSA in a variety of ways. Twenty states and the District of Columbia have passed laws that allow them to sell to specified entities all or part of their tobacco settlement revenue for a lump sum payment up front, which is also known as securitization. Note: Some of these states may not have moved forward and actually issued bonds using this authority. * Securitization involves selling or pledging expected tobacco settlement payments to a state-created corporate entity for the purpose of issuing bonds backed by tobacco settlement funds. The state then receives a lump sum payment up front.
M. Fire Safety Standards for Cigarettes
All 50 states and the District of Columbia have laws in effect setting fire-safety standards for cigarettes to help prevent cigarette-caused fires. The fire safety standards in all these states are identical to the standard in the first state to implement this type of legislation, New York.
N. Tobacco Control Program Funding
All 50 states and the District of Columbia have allocated money from annual tobacco Master Settlement Agreement payments, tobacco excise tax revenues and/or general fund revenue to tobacco control and prevention programs in FY2024 (July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, for most states). * The amounts range from $429,205 for tobacco prevention and cessation programs in Rhode Island to $208,052,000 in California. * All 50 states & DC allocated some state funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs this fiscal year. * In terms of a percentage of the level recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Maine ranks highest in its allocation of funds for tobacco prevention and cessation programs.
O. Flavored Tobacco Products
Federal law prohibits the sale of all flavored cigarettes with the exception of menthol cigarettes. In addition, as of January 1, 2024: * Massachusetts and the District of Columbia prohibits the sale of all flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes and e-cigarettes in virtually all locations. * California prohibits the sale of most flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes and e-cigarettes in most locations. * New Jersey and New York prohibit the sale of most flavored e-cigarettes in virtually all locations. New York's law does contain an exemption for flavored e-cigarettes granted authorization to sell by FDA. * Rhode Island has issued a regulation that prohibits the sale of all flavored e-cigarettes. * Maine prohibits the sale of some flavored cigars. * Utah prohibits the sale of flavored e-cigarettes unless they are granted an authorization to sell by FDA or they are sold in a tobacco specialty store.
Page last updated: June 7, 2024
