Oregon Senate votes to ban sales of e-cigarettes to minors

The Oregon Senate on Monday voted to ban sales of electronic cigarettes to minors and ban use of the devices in public and in workplaces.

House Bill 2546, which the Senate approved by a 22-8 vote, now goes back to the House of Representatives, which will decide whether to accept the Senate amendments.

E-cigarettes are not federally regulated, though they have been rising in popularity among youths. Anecdotally, users have said e-cigarettes help people quit smoking regular cigarettes, though that claim has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Public health advocates have been alarmed that e-cigarettes' use in places that have long been off-limits to tobacco smoke — such as restaurants, bars and malls — renormalizes a behavior that took years to shun socially.

In addition, e-juices, or the liquids used in vaping products, come in flavors as varied as candy. Besides nicotine, other harmful chemicals, including some carcinogens, have been detected in e-cigarette vapors. However, the lack of regulation makes it impossible to know exactly what users are inhaling, said Sen. Laurie Monnes Anderson, D-Gresham.

She added that nicotine harms cardiovascular health, teens' brains and fetal development.

Oregon is one of nine states that allow minors to buy e-cigarettes, Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, D-Beaverton, said.

"That, colleagues, is not what we want for the future of our state," she said.

Last month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that e-cigarette use by high school and middle school students about tripled from 2013 to 2014.

Under the bill, e-cigarettes and related products would be required to be wrapped in child-resistant packaging. The Oregon Health Authority would have power to impose civil penalties on those who distribute, sell or allow the sale of e-cigarettes to minors. Violators could be fined between $250 and $1,000. The funds would go toward the health authority's tobacco prevention programs.

Several senators, including Sen. Alan Olsen, R-Canby, objected that the health authority should not both enforce the rules and also collect the fines, saying that the financial incentives could lead to more aggressive enforcement than is warranted. They called for a conference committee, consisting of lawmakers from both chambers, which could further amend the bill.

It's now up to the House whether to convene a conference committee or send the bill to Gov. Kate Brown for approval as presently amended..

syoo@StatesmanJournal.com, (503) 399-6673 or follow at Twitter.com/syoo.