Issue Now in the Courts; Flavored Vapes Back on the Shelves
By Dan Murphy
A statewide ban on electronic flavored cigarettes, recently pushed through by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and a citywide ban on the same products, passed by the Yonkers City Council and signed by Mayor Mike Spano, are on hold as lawsuits against removing these products from store shelves have resulted in New York State appeals courts permitting their sale again as they determine the legality of the anti-vaping laws.
In Yonkers, Vape Café, located at the corner of Central Avenue and Yonkers Avenue, filed the lawsuit against Spano and members of the City Council for passing the law without examining its effects on local businesses and the community. The suit also claims that it will harm more people than it helps by creating an illegal vaping market that is much more dangerous.
In September, the City of Yonkers banned the sale of flavored vaping products, but a recent ruling from the NYS Appellate Division temporarily lifted the ban which has temporarily put the ban on hold.
Vape Café owner Michael Bowers has been fighting the ban for two reasons: First, he said it is bankrupting his business, which crashed by 80 percent once the ban was in place. This fact alone is the best example of how many vapers are using flavored E-cigs, of which mango is the most popular flavor.
But Bowers’ second reason for filing the lawsuit is his belief that vaping helps many stop their addiction to tobacco cigarettes. “When you get off tobacco, your taste buds change,” he said. “You want fruity flavors.”
The city and Spano stand by the law and the speed in which it was passed, to try and help keep flavored vape products out of the hands of teens. “We believe this is a good ordinance, to keep – especially the flavored products – out of the hands of kids,” said Spano. “We want to prevent that from happening and we will defend this ban in court, and the result (that) we will be able to prevent a new generation of nicotine addicts.”
The mayor’s comments echo both the moral and the legal argument about selling flavored vape products and permitting their sale. Just take a look outside your local mall, or school, or any place where teenagers get together and you will see a large number of young vapers.
But the Vape Café and vaping associations claim they have no intention of selling to minors and have taken steps to prevent it from happening. Spike Babaian of the New York State Vapor Association said the underground, illegal vaping market is where the harm and possible danger for young vapers comes from.
Bowers has another allegation in his lawsuit: that Spano and the City Council pushed through the flavored vaping ban because of politics in an attempt to become the first city in New York to pass the ban.
“Mayor Spano has to understand that there are consequences to his actions,” said Bowers. “I’m not in this industry to become a millionaire, I’m trying to help people stay off of cigarettes.” The lawsuit states that the Yonkers law was passed quickly, “in pursuit of this naked political ambition.”
While the Vaping Association claims that “a vibrant underground market will spring up immediately” if the flavored vaping ban is allowed to become law, Spano and the council have the facts about vaping by teens on their side, with half of New York high school seniors admitting to trying vaping products.
The battle over the Yonkers flavored vaping ban in the courts comes as the federal government, and the administration of President Donald Trump, have backed off the idea of banning flavored vaping products nationwide.
Back in New York, Attorney General Letitia James announced last week that her office is suing the number-one vaping product producer Juul, claiming the company has used deceptive marketing practices to target minors.
“There can be no doubt that JUUL’s aggressive advertising has significantly contributed to the public health crisis that has left youth in New York and across the country addicted to its products,” said James. “By glamorizing vaping, while at the same time downplaying the nicotine found in vaping products, JUUL is putting countless New Yorkers at risk. I am prepared to use every legal tool in our arsenal to protect the health and safety of our youth.”
The New York State Department of Health estimates that 1 million residents use e-cigarette products on a regular basis; 220,000 of those users are less than 18 years old.
