Cleveland mayor proposes ban on flavored tobacco products

CLEVELAND — Mayor Justin Bibb proposes banning the sale in Cleveland of flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes and flavored vape products.

The measure, slated for introduction to City Council on Monday, is meant to address Cleveland’s high smoking rate, which, at 30% to 35%, puts the city ahead of all other large U.S. cities and the national average of 12.5%, said Public Health Director Dr. David Margolius.

“It’s the leading cause of preventable death in the country, and when we happen to have the highest rates — it’s not that it’s been ignored, but it clearly hasn’t been prioritized by the wider community, and we hope to change that,” Margolius said.

The proposed ban on flavored products is aimed at preventing more young people from getting hooked on tobacco products in the first place, as “Big Tobacco” often uses such products to recruit new consumers, Margolius said.

It’s also meant to address the disproportionate effect that tobacco use has on Black, Latino and other communities of color, and the LGBTQ community — populations that Margolius said are also much more likely to be targeted with tobacco advertisements.

Cleveland’s efforts to curtail flavored tobacco use through a point-of-sale ban would not affect or criminalize the possession and use of such products by individuals.

If approved by City Council as-is, the ban would go into effect 180 days after it’s been signed into law. Margolius said council is expected to consider the legislation later this spring, meaning the ban could be in place before the end of 2023.

Cleveland’s proposal would establish a local licensing system for tobacco retailers, which would be similar to the way restaurants are licensed, and would cost each business $500 annually.

That licensing process would open the door for public health inspectors to visit each retailer and ensure that they are not selling such flavored products. It would also allow inspectors to better enforce the city’s existing prohibition against selling tobacco products to anyone under the age of 21, Margolius said.

Bibb’s 2023 budget proposal cut funding for unfilled jobs in various city departments, but left intact money for staff in the Division of Environmental Health, who would be responsible for the work, Margolius said.

Retailers that run afoul of the regulations could be subject to a first-time fine of $500. Subsequent violations within a threeyear period would amount to fines of up to $1,000, and retail licenses could be temporarily suspended or permanently revoked, according to the legislation.

Retailers who sell tobacco without a license could be prohibited from obtaining a license in the future as well.

Gov. Mike Dewine in January vetoed legislation passed by the Ohio General Assembly that would’ve prohibited cities like Cleveland from pursuing the ban.

Cleveland’s move would follow similar efforts that have emerged in cities around the state and nation in recent years, including Columbus, which banned the sale of flavored tobacco products in late December. In other places that have banned flavored products, smoking rates have declined between 20% and 25% in just one year’s time, Margolius said.

“In a single term in office, City Council has the opportunity to increase the life expectancy of their residents and their neighbors, and so we’re really hopeful that health will win the day here,” Margolius said.

The health director said he is expecting plenty of pushback on the proposal from tobacco companies and interests.

“We know that Big Tobacco will be here to put up a fight. That’s been their playbook in every other jurisdiction that has proposed this policy,” Margolius said. He expects various organizations funded by Big Tobacco to “spring up in opposition” as Cleveland considers the ban in the coming weeks and months.

The city is targeting both menthol cigarettes and flavored vape products within the same ban, because of outcomes in other cities that solely banned flavored vapes. In those cases, public health experts found that users often turned to menthol cigarettes once flavored vape products were no longer available, Margolius said.

Hand-in-hand with the ban would be efforts to bring more cessation resources to Cleveland residents who smoke or vape, to supplement existing resources like the state’s quit line, 1-800-QUIT-NOW.

If Cleveland does approve the ban, it’s unclear how it would affect revenues generated by Cuyahoga County’s sin tax, which is used to pay for Cleveland’s three professional sports stadiums, and arts and culture programs.

Margolius said he’s ready to talk through those funding questions.

“We’ve funded some of these initiatives on the backs of the health of Clevelanders,” he said. “We’re going prioritize the health of our residents above all.”