Critics had a mix of reasons for opposing it. Some lawmakers said it makes little sense that an 18-year-old – considered an adult who can vote, serve in the military and be elected to the state Legislature – cannot also buy legal tobacco and e-cigarettes products until they are 21.

The New York Public Interest Research Group, which represents public university students, called the measure discriminatory against people under 21 and one Republican assemblyman, Jake Ashby, who has served in Iraq and Afghanistan, voted against the bill because he said it did not carve out exceptions for service members serving on military bases in New York, such as the Army’s Fort Drum.

Assemblyman Andrew Goodell, a Jamestown-area Republican, voted for the raise-the-age tobacco bill. But he said the measure does not go far enough to address tobacco and e-cigarette industry advertising that targets children and flavored e-cigarettes that are attractive to teens. He also said the bill lacks any sort of civil penalty for those under 21 who do smoke.

“The crazy thing about this bill is you can’t buy cigarettes if you’re under 21 but you can smoke them in front of the police station even if you’re 13 years old," Goodell said.