Calif. Senate votes to raise smoking age to 21
By Patrick McGreevy and Phil Wilson, Los Angeles Times
The state Senate on Tuesday approved a bill that would raise the minimum legal age for buying cigarettes and other tobacco products from 18 to 21 as part of an effort to reduce smoking by young people.
Sen. Ed Hernandez, D-West Covina, said he introduced the bill, SB151, out of concern that an estimated 90% of tobacco users start before age 21. Raising the minimum age will mean that fewer teenagers pick up the habit, said Hernandez, an optometrist.
He cited a study done by the Institute of Medicine for the federal Food and Drug Administration that concluded that raising the smoking age to 21 would cut smoking by 12 percent more than existing control policies.
More laws! That’ll fix it!
cigarette butt CRV while at it, since most smokers drop them while hiding under the umbrella of an ignorance-generated impunity
Dog, Tobacco has been regulated in America since the 1600’s including age restrictions on its use.
So I can enlist in the Army at the age of eighteen and be in the middle east three months later but I can’t buy a pack of smokes here?
Given our history in the Middle East and the risks of smoking why would you do either of those things?
Good point DOP.
Dog: I don’t know about you, but I’m sick of people blowing smoke in my face and throwing cigarette butts in my yard. Almost anything that puts a limit on smoking I consider to be good.
Hopefully some day smoking will be banned altogether.
*sigh*
If someone blows smoke in your face, call them on their rudeness. Or is it just so much easier to let government be your bully for you?
Littering is illegal already. See something, STOP them. I have chased down vehicles that threw out butts. Got an idiot fired ’cause he threw a butt out of a company car.
Everybody knows smoking is bad for you. This is just another stupid, feel-good law to make people think the legislators are doing something, while what they’re actually doing is coming up with new ways to bring in new revenue and put more people in jail.
No, I don’t smoke. But I also don’t think I have the right to tell everybody else what they can or can’t do, if it doesn’t directly harm anybody else.
Typical government hypocrisy. So our government believes that an individual lacks the maturity to buy a pack of cigarettes at age 18 (or a beer) but they have no problem with recruiting that same individual into the military, arming them, and then sending them to the Middle East where they can be maimed or killed.
This is ridiculous, and I’m not even a smoker.
2nd hand smoke is definately something that directly harms people. I speak from personal experience as I have respatory problems from growing up in a household with parents that smoked. My father, my aunt and my fathrt in law all died horrible deaths from being smokers. Cigarettes are disgusting and if this regulation would help than im all for it. Time will tell…
Fight and die for our country but can’t have a drink or smoke. I don’t agree.
While we are at it lets ban stupid people, corrupt politicians , and know it all bloggers that tell everybody else how to live their lives.
since 18 year olds are not smart enough to make their own choices we should also raise the voting age to 21!!! Of course since the current smoking age is 18 and the drinking age is 21 that must mean that people under those ages dont drink or smoke. It has to be true as it is the law. When was the last time you saw a 15 yr old arrested for smoking a ciggy?
What are they going to do when they stop losing the revenue from tax on cigarettes? Like your kids free health care, thank a smoker.
‘While we are at it lets ban stupid people
Which side of the curve do you fall on? Don’t be so hasty.
Relo and sam make some compelling points. Maybe we should make the minimum age for joining the military 21. And as for cigarettes, well…if you want to search for a ‘gateway drug’, leave pot alone and look towards tobacco and alcohol.
BO banning stoopid people would eliminate you, IM ALL FOR IT !!!! Lmao