More than a year ago, the community of Robbinsdale wasn’t quite ready to enact Tobacco 21, but its leaders made a commitment to take another look at it. On March 19, the City Council upheld that commitment and passed Tobacco 21 with a 4-1 vote. “At that time, we weren’t ready to move on T21, but seeing all the other communities around us do it gave us momentum again,” council member Dan Rogan said. “It will really protect our young Robbinsdalians. We hope this is one more city that will help push the state to T21.” Additionally, Robbinsdale voted to restrict the sale of electronic cigarettes to adult-only tobacco. Robbinsdale is the 26th community in Minnesota to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights, Shoreview, Minneapolis, Saint Peter, Richfield, Roseville, Minnetonka, Excelsior, Lauderdale, Hermantown, Brooklyn Center, Mendota Heights, Otter Tail, Pope and Beltrami Counties, Eden Prairie, Waseca, Duluth and Bemidji have taken this step. Robbinsdale resident and physician Dr. Emily Bannister previously testified in favor of all the proposed changes to the tobacco ordinance. Bannister said, “The policies you are considering are far more effective at reducing the harms of than anything we can do from within our clinic walls. 18-to-21 year-olds only make up 2 percent of tobacco sales, but are one of the primary suppliers of tobacco to underage youth. Raising the tobacco sales age to 21 and restrict e-cigarettes to adult-only tobacco stores will help eliminate the pipeline of tobacco into our high schools.” Youth e-cigarette use has increased nearly 50 percent in the past three years, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. Nearly one in five Minnesota High School students currently uses e-cigarettes, according to the 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey. “Robbinsdale should be commended for taking these life-saving measures,” Emily Anderson, Program Director at the Association for Nonsmokers-Minnesota, said. “The city has shown its commitment to the health of its residents over the past year by taking on bold public health policy initiatives aimed at helping young people never to start the deadly habit of tobacco use in the first place.”

The community of North Oaks might be small, but it came up big when it comes to protecting its youth. North Oaks unanimously voted to raise the tobacco sales age to 21 on March 14. “We’re a small community, but our neighboring communities, like Shoreview, started passing Tobacco 21, so we thought we’d make it illegal for kids here,” Mayor Gregg Nelson said. “It was easy to see vaping was designed to get kids and young adults involved.” North Oaks is the 24th community in Minnesota to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights, Shoreview, Minneapolis, Saint Peter, Richfield, Roseville, Minnetonka, Excelsior, Lauderdale, Hermantown, Brooklyn Center, Mendota Heights, Otter Tail, Pope and Beltrami Counties, Eden Prairie, Waseca and Duluth have taken this step. Youth e-cigarette use has increased nearly 50 percent in the past three years, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. Nearly one in five Minnesota High School students currently uses e-cigarettes, according to the 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey. “It is great that North Oaks is putting the health of their kids first,” said Katie Engman, program director at the Association for Nonsmokers-Minnesota. “North Oaks is joining 23 other Minnesota communities in protecting its residents from the harms of tobacco, including e-cigarettes. This is a great step, and we hope many other cities and the state will follow.”

By Betsy Brock, Research Director Altria, the maker of Marlboro cigarettes, recently purchased a stake in JUUL, the company that manufactures the wildly popular e-cigarette with the same name. JUUL controls approximately 70 percent of the e-cigarette market. The company started in 2015 and is valued at $38 billion. JUUL’s stated mission is to “improve the lives of the world’s one billion smokers by eliminating cigarettes.” The company’s merger with Altria, the country’s largest cigarette company, calls this mission into question. It is hard to understand how a company can strive to eliminate cigarettes from the marketplace while partnering with a company that controls the largest cigarette market share in the U.S. Altria paid $12.8 billion for a 35 percent ownership stake in JUUL. As a part of this agreement, Altria agreed to adopt and support the JUUL mission, provide JUUL with premier tobacco product retail shelf space, allow JUUL to communicate with consumers via cigarette pack inserts and marketing databases, allow JUUL to remain in control, apply logistics and distribution experience to help JUUL, and provide funds that benefit JUUL employees and investors. This agreement means JUUL will have access to Altria’s vast and substantial marketing networks. Altria typically controls the most valuable and noticeable shelf space behind convenience store cash registers on the so-called tobacco “power wall.” Further, Altria has a consumer marketing database with an estimated 25 million names. JUUL is taking other steps to expand their reach. They recently hired a full-time lobbyist who is based in Minnesota. The lobbyist who has extensive experience lobbying for the medical device industry will lead lobbying efforts in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Despite JUUL’s success, the company does face uncertainty. In 2018, the FDA opened an investigation into JUUL. The FDA ordered JUUL to turn over company marketing and scientific reports in order to determine if JUUL targets youth with marketing. In mid-September, the FDA took it one step further. The FDA put JUUL and four other e-cigarette companies on notice with 60 days to prove they have the systems in place to ensure that young people can’t access these products. Failure to do so could result in the removal of these products from the market. JUUL’s partnership with Altria likely means JUUL will have access to Altria’s vast legal expertise and resources. Altria is known for vigorously pursuing legal battles. The company is not afraid to challenge the federal government. It is hard to know what this could mean for the FDA’s planned JUUL crackdown or for the future of JUUL itself.

The Eden Prairie City Council took a big step toward protecting youth from the harms of tobacco when it voted 3-1 to raise the tobacco sales age to 21 on Dec. 4, 2018. “When we talk about tobacco-related costs, we can just talk about the small profits loss to several businesses,” said council member Ron Case. “The real cost is the tremendous toll to families of kids who started to smoke.” Eden Prairie is the 19th community in Minnesota to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights, Shoreview, Minneapolis, Saint Peter, Richfield, Roseville, Minnetonka, Excelsior, Lauderdale, Hermantown, Brooklyn Center, Mendota Heights and Otter Tail County have taken this step. “I’m proud that you, our community leaders, are doing what it takes to protect our children from dangerous products right now,” said Eden Prairie resident Donna Shaked, in commending the city council. “I strongly believe one of the most effective ways to do it is by raising the legal tobacco sales age from 18 to 21. Our kids’ future depends on it.” Many community members showed up in support of this life-saving ordinance. Several community members spoke during the public hearing a couple of weeks ago and again Tuesday night. They urged the council to support the ordinance to prevent another generation from picking up a lifelong deadly addiction. Youth e-cigarette use has increased nearly 50 percent in the past three years, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. Nearly one in five Minnesota High School students currently uses e-cigarettes, according to the 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey.

Brooklyn Center became the latest city in Minnesota to protect its youth when the City Council unanimously voted to raise the tobacco sales age to 21 on Nov. 12, 2018. The city also restricted the sale of all electronic delivery devices to adult-only tobacco stores as a way to impact the growing trend of e-cigarette use among youth by making the products less accessible and less appealing to young people. Brooklyn Center made a similar cutting-edge move when it became the first in Minnesota to set a minimum price for cigars in 2014. Additionally, the city capped the number of tobacco licenses, increased the number of annual compliance checks and increased the administrative penalties for stores that violate the provisions of the ordinances. Three council members talked of losing family members to tobacco-related illnesses, and all who spoke during the meeting expressed strong support for the measures. Brooklyn Center is the 16th city in Minnesota to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights, Shoreview, Minneapolis, Saint Peter, Richfield, Roseville, Minnetonka, Excelsior, Lauderdale and Hermantown have also raised the tobacco sales age to 21. Also, there is one county, Otter Tail, that has raised the age. Many community members showed up in support of this life-saving ordinance. Several community members and students shared stories of personal loss from tobacco use and nicotine addiction. Jess Nolan, who lives in Brooklyn Center and works for the American Heart Association, urged the council to prevent this generation from having stories of loss because of tobacco use. “I was only in elementary school when I lost two uncles to tobacco-related illnesses,” Nolan said. “An ordinance like Tobacco 21 might have prevented them from getting hooked on cigarettes and saved their lives. While we can’t go back in time to protect my uncles, we can do something to give the next generation the support they need to lead tobacco-free lives.”

Like many of its neighboring cities, Lauderdale placed a priority on the health of its youth and residents on Oct. 23, 2018, when the City Council unanimously voted to restrict the sale of all flavored tobacco products and to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Lauderdale is the 14th Minnesota city to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights, Shoreview, Minneapolis, Saint Peter, Richfield, Roseville, Minnetonka and Excelsior have also raised the tobacco sales age to 21. More than 95 percent of current smokers started smoking before they turned 21. If youth don’t start smoking before the age of 21, they likely never will. Community members and high school students spoke up in favor of the two measures during the public hearing two weeks ago. Hearing from the students about the prevalence of tobacco use, particularly e-cigarettes, in local schools cemented things for council member Jeffrey Dains. “It was very impressive to have the young people come in and talk about the significant tobacco usage,” Dains said. “I was persuaded before they came, but even more so after they came. It was heartening to hear them.” For the first time in 17 years, the youth tobacco use rate climbed, according to the 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey. Much of the increase has been attributed to increased use of e-cigarettes and cheap, flavored cigars. “I’m proud to live in a city that puts the lives of their community members over tobacco industry profits,” resident and advocate Melissa Walker said. “I lost my father to cancer, and my husband and brother smoke. I don’t want to see my children or other youth become addicted to tobacco. These life-saving measures will reduce the appeal and access to tobacco products.” Lauderdale is the ninth city in the state to restrict the sale of flavored tobacco. Lauderdale follows Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Shoreview, Saint Louis Park, Robbinsdale, Duluth, Falcon Heights and Mendota Heights. Of those, Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Duluth, Falcon Heights and Lauderdale include menthol in their restrictions.

Minnetonka jointed the momentum to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. It became the latest city in the Metro when the City Council unanimously voted to raise the tobacco sales age to 21 on Sept. 17. “This is one of the easiest votes I’ve cast,” council member Tim Bergstedt said. “We are making a decision that will change lives.” Minnetonka is the 12th city in Minnesota to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights, Shoreview, Minneapolis, Saint Peter, Richfield and Roseville have also raised the tobacco sales age to 21. Jerry Levine, a resident and advocate, said during a July 23 hearing, “I understand that we have made progress on preventing people from smoking cigarettes, but the tobacco industry is clever. New products like e-cigarettes are addicting the next generation, and thus youth tobacco rates are rising. We can’t let this happen here in our community.” Many community members showed up in support of this life-saving ordinance. Several community members and students shared stories of personal loss from tobacco use and nicotine addiction. They urged the council to support the ordinance to prevent another generation from suffering the same fate. Hopkins High senior Kaitlyn Ziegler spoke about the prevalence of vaping among her classmates. “It has become a part of school culture to vape at events and on social media,” Ziegler said. Said council member Patty Acomb, “I’m proud of the young people advocating on behalf of themselves and their peers.” Youth e-cigarette use has increased nearly 50 percent in the past three years, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. Nearly one in five Minnesota High School students currently uses e-cigarettes, according to the 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey. One brand of electronic cigarette, JUUL, is particularly concerning, said Kristen Ackert, a public health advocate. “The JUUL delivers nicotine more quickly, more effectively and at higher doses than other e-cigarettes,” Ackert said. “All of that increases the risk of addiction. No amount of nicotine is safe for young people.” Last week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cracked down on JUUL and other top e-cigarette makers because they market to youth.

Roseville became the latest city in the Metro to protect youth when the City Council unanimously voted to raise the tobacco sales age to 21 on June 18. Council member Robert Willmus, who brought this to the city council last year, said he especially liked seeing all the youth in the audience. He talked about his son, a rising high school senior, sharing stories and videos of teens smoking inschool. “For me, where it really hits home is with the young people and what we can do to stop them from starting,” Willmus said. Roseville is the 11th city in Minnesota to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights, Shoreview, Minneapolis, Saint Peter and Richfield have also raised the tobacco sales age to 21. Council member Lisa Laliberte said this was a positive step for Roseville, but said its neighboring cities, as well as the state, needs to step up on this issue. “We are doing this, and this is great, but there’s a lot of other work,” Laliberte said. “We border 10 cities, and three have done this, but seven haven’t. I challenge our state legislators to look at this.” Community members showed up in force, with more than 60 packing the chambers, to support this life-saving ordinance. Many shared stories of personal loss from tobacco use and nicotine addiction. They urged the council to support the ordinance to prevent another generation from suffering the same fate. “It’s heartening to see the young people here,” council member Tammy McGehee said. “I think it’s important to provide less access for the younger students.” Roseville Area High School student Grace Jackson spoke about the prevalence of vaping among her classmates. “Vape pens or e-cigs are a big problem in my high school,” Jackson said. “I constantly see my classmates vaping outside and at parties. I try to stay away from it, but it’s so prevalent. It’s really unavoidable.” Council member Jason Etten, who is a teacher, said he is also seeing what Jackson testified about. “It’s happening in the classrooms, and it’s something we need to make less possible,” Etten said. “I hope this is a tool we move forward to reduce some of the people from starting.” Youth e-cigarette use has increased in the last three years nearly 50 percent, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. Nearly one in five Minnesota High School students currently uses e-cigarettes, according to the 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey. One brand of electronic cigarette, JUUL, is particularly concerning to parent and public health professional, said Katie Engman. “The Juul delivers nicotine more quickly, more effectively and at higher doses than other e-cigarettes. All of that increases the risk of addiction and no amount of nicotine is safe for young people.” Approximately 95 percent of current adult smokers started before they turned 21. If youth don’t start smoking before the age of 21, they likely never will.

The Richfield City Council showed strong leadership in protecting the health and well-being of its residents on June 12 by voting unanimously to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Council member Maria Regan Gonzalez championed the ordinance, along with council members Mike Howard and Edwina Garcia. Council member Simon Trautmann and Mayor Pat Elliott also voted in favor. “This is not about stigmatizing smokers or stigmatizing the vaping community,” Gonzalez said. “It is about limiting access for our youth to nicotine and starting smoking.” Richfield is the 10th city in Minnesota to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights, Shoreview, Minneapolis and Saint Peter have also raised the tobacco sales age to 21. More than 95 percent of current smokers started smoking before they turned 21. If youth don’t start smoking before the age of 21, they likely never will. “Thank you to the City of Richfield for being a leader in our state and protecting future generations to come from harmful and addictive products including vapes and e-cigarettes,” said University of Minnesota student and Richfield resident Nia Kilstofte.

The Minneapolis City Council voted unanimously on May 25 to raise the tobacco sales age to 21, drawing a standing ovation from the large crowd of green-shirted Tobacco 21 advocates in the chambers. The council members also stood and clapped after the passage of the ordinance. Council Members Andrew Johnson and Jeremiah Ellison co-authored the ordinance, which will reduce youth smoking and combat tobacco industry targeting. Immediately after the conclusion of the council meeting, Mayor Jacob Frey held a press conference in support of the ordinance and signed it into law. “Our youth and our students are the ones changing hearts and minds on many things,” Frey said. “Today, the unanimous vote is a result of your hard work and persistence.” Minneapolis is the eighth city in Minnesota to raise the tobacco sales age to 21. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth, North Mankato, Falcon Heights and Shoreview have also raised the tobacco sales age to 21. Frey named all these cities and said, “Now, Minneapolis has joined them too!” “Let’s go save some lives,” Frey said as he signed the ordinance. Frey and Johnson also encouraged state lawmakers to turn this into state law and protect all youth in Minnesota. Studies project 30,000 youth would not start smoking during the next 15 years if enacted across the state. More than 95 percent of current smokers started smoking before they turned 21. If youth don’t start smoking before the age of 21, they likely never will. More than 300 cities and five states nationally have raised the age to 21. “Cigarettes are easy to get your hands on because seniors can go down the street to the local store and get them,” Johnson said. “The best way to address this is by making sure youth never start. We won’t prevent every youth from getting cigarettes, but it’s not intended to. It will make it harder. It will save lives. Let’s get this thing done across the state of Minnesota.” Added Ellison, “We know we want to support our businesses, but nothing can come at the expense of our youth and our community at large.” Derall Pratt, a youth working with Breathe Free North out of NorthPoint Health & Wellness, said during the mayor’s press conference he has seen the rise of e-cigarette usage among his peers during the past few years. “Hopefully, this is the first step toward a tobacco-free generation,” Pratt said. Minneapolis Parks Board Commissioner LaTrisha Vetaw, who works at NorthPoint Health & Wellness, commended the city council for the unanimous vote, saying, “Today, our city took another step toward a tobacco-free future. The adoption of this ordinance shows our young people their voices matter. Thanks for having the courage to protect youth.” Sylvia Amos, of the StairStep Foundation, emotionally spoke about how tobacco-related illnesses claimed the lives of many important people in her family, including her mother and husband. She talked about how the tobacco industry particularly targets the African American community. “We are taking the health of our community back and protecting the next generation from tobacco addiction,” Amos said. We cannot afford to have another generation sentenced to death because tobacco companies need to replace those who have died with new, young smokers.” The ordinance will go into effect on Oct. 1, 2018.

Falcon Heights took major steps to protect its youth and residents on May 9, when it became the first city in the state to restrict the sale of all flavored tobacco products to adult-only tobacco stores and raise the tobacco sales age to 21. The measures passed on a 3-2 vote. Falcon Heights is the second city in two days – and seventh overall in Minnesota – to raise the tobacco sales age to 21, following Shoreview, which voted to raise the age to 21 on Monday. Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth and North Mankato have also raised the tobacco sales age to 21. More than 95 percent of current smokers started smoking before they turned 21. If youth don’t start smoking before the age of 21, they likely never will. Mayor Peter Lindstrom cast the deciding vote after talking about how the letters he received in support of the ordinance hit home for him. He quoted a student who wrote, “We need to make the healthiest choice the easiest choice.” “For 17 years, all the efforts have worked, but there’s been a change, and we need to double down our efforts now. Not tomorrow, but now,” Lindstrom said, citing the Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey, which saw an increase in youth tobacco use for the first time in 17 years. Much of the increase has been attributed to increased use of e-cigarettes and cheap, flavored cigars. “It’s everywhere,” said Roseville Area High School junior Vakare Bartkaitis. “There are no doors on our bathrooms because of people using e-cigarettes. You can smell it walking into the bathrooms. They go sit in a circle inside the handicap stall and pass it around. This ordinance will help prevent youth from making the wrong decisions, so we can lead our healthiest and happiest lives.” Additionally, Falcon Heights is seventh city in the state to restrict the sale of flavored tobacco. Falcon Heights follows Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Shoreview, Saint Louis Park, Robbinsdale and Duluth. Three other cities, Minneapolis, Saint Paul and Duluth, have restricted menthol.

In a growing trend in Minnesota, Shoreview became the sixth city in the state to raise the tobacco sales age to 21 when the Shoreview City Council unanimously approved the ordinance on June 7. “The city of Shoreview has a long history of tobacco prevention,” Mayor Sandy Martin said. “This will be monumental.” Shoreview joins Edina, Saint Louis Park, Bloomington, Plymouth and North Mankato in Minnesota. There are five states and more than 300 municipalities that have raised the sales age for all tobacco products to 21. More than 95 percent of current smokers started smoking before they turned 21. If youth don’t start smoking before the age of 21, they likely never will. “I want to help other youth not get started using tobacco products,” said Mounds View senior Meghan McFarling, who was one of four students who testified. “Vaping has exploded in popularity, and my peers aren’t aware of the danger of products, such as JUUL. This ordinance will make it harder for young kids to get access to these products by taking them out of the high schools. This will help to stop the start.” Shoreview has been a champion for health. Just two years ago, the council voted to restrict the sale of flavored products to adult-only tobacco stores. A national consensus is growing to prevent addictions and future health problems by raising the sale age of tobacco products to 21. Research shows that increasing the tobacco age in Minnesota would prevent 30,000 youth from becoming smokers over the next 15 years.