Because the city recognizes that:
Tobacco use has been shown to be the cause of several serious health problems which subsequently place a financial burden on all levels of government; this chapter is intended to regulate the sale of tobacco, tobacco-related devices, electronic delivery devices, and nicotine or lobelia delivery products for the purpose of enforcing and furthering existing laws, and to protect youth and young adults against the serious effects associated with use and initiation.
The use of tobacco products has devastating health and economic consequences. Tobacco use is the foremost preventable cause of premature death in America. It causes half a million deaths annually and has been responsible for 20.8 million premature deaths in the U.S. over the past 50 years since the first Surgeon General's report on smoking in 1964. This leads to more than $300 billion in health care and lost worker productivity costs each year. In Minnesota, smoking was responsible for $3.19 billion in excess medical expenditures and the deaths of 6,312 individuals in 2014.
Youth and young people are particularly susceptible to the addictive properties of tobacco products, and are particularly likely to become lifelong users. An estimated 5.6 million youth aged 0 to 17 are projected to die prematurely from a tobacco-related illness if prevalence rates do not change. National data show that about 95% of adult smokers begin smoking before they turn 21. The ages of 18 to 21 are a critical period when many smokers move from experimental smoking to regular, daily use. Electronic delivery device use among youth has recently tripled. Young minds are particularly susceptible to the addictive properties of nicotine. As a result, approximately 3 out of 4 teen smokers end up smoking into adulthood.
This chapter is intended to regulate the sale of tobacco, tobacco-related devices, electronic delivery devices, and nicotine or lobelia delivery products to protect the public, especially youth and young adults, and to further the official public policy of the State of Minnesota in regard to preventing young people from starting to smoke as stated in M.S. § 144.391, as it may be amended from time to time.
In making these findings, the City Council accepts the conclusions and recommendations of the U.S. Surgeon General reports, "E-cigarette Use Among Youth and Young Adults" (2016), "The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress" (2014) and "Preventing Tobacco Use Among Youth and Young Adults" (2012); a BlueCross BlueShield of Minnesota report, "Health Care Costs and Smoking in Minnesota: The Bottom Line" (2017); the Institute of Medicine in their study, "Public Health Implications of Raising the Minimum Age of Legal Access to Tobacco Products" (2015); the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in their studies, "Tobacco Use Among Middle and High School Students—United States, 2011–2015," and "Selected Cigarette Smoking Initiation and Quitting Behaviors Among High School Students, United States, 1997"; and of the following scholars in these scientific journals: Xin Xu et al., Annual Healthcare Spending Attributable to Cigarette Smoking: An Update, Am. J. Prey. Med. 48(3): 326-33 (Mar. 2015); Giovino GA, "Epidemiology of Tobacco Use in the United States," Oncogene (2002) 21, 7326-40; Khuder SA, et al., "Age at Smoking Onset and its Effect on Smoking Cessation," Addictive Behavior 24(5): 673-7, September-October 1999; D'Avanzo B, et al., "Age at Starting Smoking and Number of Cigarettes Smoked," Annals of Epidemiology 4(6): 455-59, November 1994; Chen, J & Millar, WJ, "Age of Smoking Initiation: Implications for Quitting," Health Reports 9(4): 39-46, Spring 1998; and Everett SA, et al., "Initiation of Cigarette Smoking and Subsequent Smoking Behavior Among U.S. High School Students," Preventive Medicine, 29(5): 327-33, November 1999; copies of which are adopted by reference.
(Ord. 662, passed 11-28-2016; Am. Ord. 691, passed 8-26-2019)