What to Know
- Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to raise the state's minimum age to buy tobacco and electronic cigarette products from 18 to 21
- Cuomo announced Saturday that he will include the proposal in his 2019 executive budget
- The minimum age to buy tobacco products and e-cigarettes in New York City and a number of counties in the state is already 21
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to raise the state's minimum age to buy tobacco and electronic cigarette products from 18 to 21 — to curb their use by younger people.
Cuomo announced Saturday that he will include the proposal in his 2019 executive budget.
The minimum age to buy tobacco products and e-cigarettes in New York City, Nassau, Orange, Rockland, Suffolk, Westchester and a number of other counties in the state is already 21, the state Department of Health's website notes.
The legislation would ban sale of tobacco and electronic cigarette products in pharmacies, restrict their display in retail stores that are not adult-only and require that e-cigarettes be sold only by licensed retailers.
The governor says New York has made "great strides" to stamp out teen smoking, but new products threaten to undo the progress.
Cuomo also wants to clarify the health department's authority to ban the sale of certain flavored e-cigarette liquids, except menthol, that could be popular as a smoking starter product for youth.
