Law raising age limit to 21 for sale of tobacco, including cigarettes and vaping products with nicotine, comes into effect TODAY
- The legal age for buying cigarettes was changed from 18 to 21 in the United States last week
- The provision raising the legal limit, part of a massive spending bill, was passed by Congress and signed into law By President Donald Trump on December 20
- The new law enacted by Congress applies to the purchase of all tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes
- Usually, new legislation doesn’t go into effect right away, but the change made increased the age limit in existing law, so it was immediate
- The US Food and Drug Administration said the new law was now in effect on Friday
A new law that prohibits the sale of tobacco products to anyone under the age of 21 is now in effect, the US Food and Drug Administration said on Friday.
The new law enacted last week by Congress, includes both conventional and electronic cigarettes, or vaping products that heat a liquid containing nicotine.
The provision raising the legal limit from 18 to 21 nationwide was in a massive spending bill passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump on December 20.
No one under 21 in the US can legally buy cigarettes, under changes recently made to existing US laws
The changes approved by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump last went into effect on Friday, says the US Food and Drug Administration
The bipartisan legislation, supported by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, was attached to a package of must-pass spending bills that will keep the government running into next year.
Trump approved two spending bills for a total of $1.4 trillion, including a new defense spending bill in a public ceremony at Joint Base Andrews.
The civilian spending bill was signed aboard Air Force One as he traveled to his Mar-a-Lago resort, where he will be celebrating Christmas and New Year’s.
About one-third of states already had their own laws restricting tobacco sales to people 21 and older.
“This is a major step in protecting the next generation of children from becoming addicted to tobacco products,” new FDA commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn tweeted last week.
A crackdown on youth smoking, by changing the minimum age for cigarette and other tobacco purchases to 21 from the current 18, would give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration six months to develop regulations.
Usually, new legislation doesn’t take effect right away.
The change simply increased the age limit in existing law, so it was able to go into effect immediately, a spokesman for the Food and Drug Administration said Friday.
The agency has regulated tobacco products since 2009. It enforces the law partly through spot checks. Stores can be fined or barred from selling tobacco for repeat violations.
The change in the legal age also applies to vaping products that use nicotine