“A law that increases youth smoking could pose a threat to public health.”
This month marks the one-year anniversary of Massachusetts’ experiment in banning all flavored tobacco products. The Bay State was the first in the nation to enact such a far-reaching prohibition. Now, Maine is considering a similar ban on flavored tobacco products. But before moving forward, it should look at the data coming out of Massachusetts.
Before the Massachusetts bill prohibiting flavored tobacco passed in 2020, its supporters claimed that concerns over tobacco sales fleeing to other states were overblown and they said the expected public health benefits of the ban would offset any potential tax revenue losses. But, with eleven months worth of excise tax stamps, it appears they were wrong.
As Jonathan Shaerm, executive director of the New England Convenience Store and Energy Marketers Association, noted, Massachusetts lost $140 million in revenue from the ban on menthol cigarettes alone. Shaerm wrote:
Guy Bentley – Reason Foundation – 2021-06-07.
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