Governor Ron DeSantis has vetoed a bill that would have raised the minimum smoking age to 21 in Florida.
Earlier in the year, the state was poised to raise the minimum age for smoking and vaping to 21. But on Tuesday, in a letter sent to the Department of State Secretary, Gov. DeSantis explained that banning vaping would be "more dangerous" for hundreds of thousands of Floridians who rely on the reduced-risk alternatives to cigarettes.
Gov. DeSantis said in the letter that the bill -- Senate Bill 810 -- would lead more people to go back to smoking cigarettes and would "drive others to the hazardous black market."
While Gov. DeSantis says it's "an important goal" to get younger Floridians to cut down on vaping, he said in the letter that the goal will not be achieved with the passage of the bill.
Prior to being vetoed by the governor, Senate Bill 810 would have also banned sales of flavored vaping products.
The bill would have also impacted businesses selling vaping products. Following Gov. DeSantis veto, Vapor Technology Association (VTA), a nonprofit dedicated to selling vapor products commended the governor for taking action.
VTA's executive director Tony Abboud released the following statement.
"Tonight, Governor DeSantis has shown true leadership and understanding in his decision to veto SB 810. SB 810 was passed by the legislature in March of this year under the mistaken belief that it would raise the age to purchase vapor products to 21 when, in fact, 21 had already been the age to purchase vapor products in Florida since last December 2019.
Governor DeSantis understood that the real purpose of the bill, an adult flavor ban, would have had devastating public health and economic impacts for the state. The governor's decision to veto SB 810 has saved the jobs of over 4,500 Floridians, kept 800 small businesses open and saved the economy $605.6 million in revenues. Most importantly, as Governor DeSantis noted, he is helping to keep Floridians from returning to smoking cigarettes."
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