Proposed bill would ban sale of menthol cigarettes

Opponents of a bill to ban the sale of menthol cigarettes say small businesses would lose more than a quarter of their annual sales if it becomes a law, but lawmakers argued on Monday that a prohibition could reduce the prevalence of nicotine addiction and cancer in the state.

“We recognize that revenue loss, if there is one, is more than matched by the gain in lives,” said Assemblyman Herb Conaway, D–Burlington, chairman of the Assembly Health and Senior Services Committee, which advanced the bill Monday after a 7-3 vote.

New Jersey would be the first state in the nation to have a ban on the sale of menthol cigarettes, should the bill become law, lawmakers said at the committee hearing. Last summer, San Francisco became the first city in the country to ban the product, according to reports.

"Right now, let’s focus on the worst offender and that is the menthol applied to these combustible products," said Conaway, an internal medicine doctor at St. Francis Medical Center in Trenton. "They are enemy No. 1 when it comes to lung diseases in our country."

The proposed legislation would amend the current law, which prohibits the sale of flavored cigarettes. The bill is headed to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for review.

The cooling agent in menthol cigarettes, like flavored cigarettes, masks the harshness of cigarette smoke, making the product more appealing to first-time smokers or young adults, according to data in a 2013 report by the Federal Food and Drug Administration.

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“Further, the data indicate that menthol in cigarettes is likely associated with greater addiction,” the report states. “Menthol smokers show greater signs of nicotine dependence and are less likely to successfully quit smoking.”

But banning the sale of menthol cigarettes would be detrimental to convenience store owners, said Mary Ellen Peppard, the assistant vice president of government affairs at the New Jersey Food Council, which is an alliance of food retailers.

“Our members report that menthol cigarettes comprise about 35 to 40 percent of their total product sales,” Peppard said. The loss in sales would result in a significant shortfall in tax revenue and could bring the potential for a black market on the product, Peppard said.

Lawmakers opposed to the bill expressed similar concern. Assemblyman Erik Peterson, R-Hunterdon, said those seeking menthol cigarettes could simply travel to neighboring states to make the purchase, bringing the products into the state that way.

"I’m more concerned about reducing the prevalence of nicotine addiction and reducing the prevalence of cancer among our society," said Conaway.

Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi, R-River Vale, and Assemblyman Brian Rumpf, R-Ocean, also voted against the bill.

Email: carrera@northjersey.com