OLYMPIA, Wash. – Legislators could soon consider a ban on flavored tobacco products like vapes and menthol cigarettes. While supporters believe a ban is important for public health, opponents believe the ban could do more harm than good.
If passed, House Bill 1203 would ban the sale and advertising of any kind of flavored tobacco or nicotine product starting in 2026 – whether it be a cinnamon-flavored vape pen, a nicotine pouch or a menthol cigarette.
“This is really an opportunity for us to try to dig deeper and ensure that we are removing those products from the market – essentially removing access to those products and ensuring that our young folks don’t end up with a lifetime of addiction,” said State Representative Kristine Reeves (D-Federal Way), prime sponsor of the legislation.
CDC data from 2024 shows youth tobacco use is at a 25-year-low, with only 2.25 million middle and high schoolers reporting they currently use any kind of tobacco product. Reeves said fruity or candy flavors have been used to draw young people into using tobacco.
“I want to make sure that we aren’t building the next generation in a way that they’re addicted–that they end up with a lifelong addiction like my mom, who unfortunately died at the age of 60 from lung cancer,” she said.
The bill is not calling for a total ban – any product that is authorized by the Federal Food and Drug Administration would remain on shelves.
Within the past six months, certain Zyn nicotine pouches and menthol-flavored e-cigarettes received FDA marketing authorizations.
Reeves said she understands people will want to access products in a free market, but her ultimate goal is to educate people on the dangers of the products.
“How do we make sure that our regulatory agencies have the resources necessary to tackle this problem and make sure that we’re keeping these products in a well-regulated market and away from our kids,” she said.
Tony Abboud, executive director of vaping advocacy group Vapor Technology Association, said vaping is a less harmful alternative to cigarettes and helps people quit smoking. He said banning flavored vapes will increase traditional cigarette use.
“It’s clearly a huge public health mistake and it’s going to cause a public health disaster in the state of Washington,” Abboud said.
The FDA has authorized 34 e-cigarette products to be sold in the United States as of January 2025. The agency says while e-cigarettes “can generally be a lower-risk alternative” to cigarettes, they are not risk-free and “there are no safe tobacco products.”
Abboud argued the ban could result in hundreds of millions of dollars in lost tax revenues, and lawmakers should instead consider limiting how the products are sold and advertised.
“We can implement marketing restrictions on how e-cigarettes are advertised, where they can be advertised. Where they can be sold, how they can be sold,” he said.
Reeves said the ban ultimately is that kind of limit, as there are no benefits to any nicotine product being on the market.
“I don’t want to hear the industry talk about how they’re providing a harm-reduction product for a problem they created – with both the invention of nicotine utilization, and quite frankly, with their promotion and targeting of black African Americans and youth in the continuation of that product,” the representative said.
According to Reeves, the bill is slated for a committee hearing sometime next week. She said she is looking forward to working with lawmakers and the public to get it signed into law.
Albert James is a television reporter covering state government as part of the Murrow News Fellowship program – a collaborative effort between news outlets statewide and Washington State University.
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