Press Releases

ADVISORY: Two Legislative Hearings Scheduled for Wednesday on Bills to Prevent Youth Tobacco Addiction

Senate Judiciary Will Hear Minnesota Tobacco 21 Bill at 1:00 p.m.
House HHS Policy Will Hear Kids in Cars, Flavored Tobacco Bills at 2:30 p.m.

ST. PAUL – This Wednesday, February 26, Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation will participate in two legislative hearings on three separate bills to reduce youth tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke. The coalition will weigh in on proposals to raise the tobacco age to 21, to prohibit flavored tobacco sales and to prohibit cigarette and e-cigarette use in cars carrying children as passengers.

At 1:00 p.m., members of the coalition will testify in support of adopting statewide Tobacco 21 (SF463) in the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee, in Room 1100 of the Minnesota Senate Building. In December, President Trump signed Tobacco 21 into federal law, but state action is still needed. The statewide Tobacco 21 bill will ensure Minnesota can maximize the benefits of Tobacco 21 through strong enforcement and compliance. Senator Carla Nelson (R-Rochester), chief author of the proposal, first introduced her bill in the Minnesota Legislature in May of 2017.

At 2:30 p.m., Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation will testify in support of two tobacco prevention bills in the House Health and Human Services Policy Committee, in Room 200 of the State Office Building. The committee will hear HF3032, which would prohibit the sale of all flavored tobacco products in Minnesota. Representative Laurie Halverson (DFL-Eagan) is chief author of that bill, and will be joined by representatives from the coalition along with students from Henry Sibley High School. Flavored tobacco products are a key reason Minnesota is facing a youth nicotine epidemic. Prohibiting the sale of all flavored tobacco products, especially menthol, will create a healthier future for kids and address tobacco-related health disparities.

The committee will also hear HF3072, which would ensure clean air for kids in cars. Research finds that 30-minute secondhand smoke exposure in a car is equivalent to sitting for three hours in a smoke-filled room yet nearly one in four Minnesota kids reported riding in a smoky car in the past month. Committee Chair Rep. Rena Moran’s (DFL-St. Paul) bill would prohibit smoking – including e-cigarette use – in a vehicle when children under 18 are present. Nine state have passed similar laws to protect kids.

1:00 p.m. Senate Judiciary Hearing on SF463 to adopt Tobacco 21 in Minnesota

WHEN: Wednesday, February 26, 2020, 1:00 p.m. (first on agenda)

WHAT: Senate Judiciary Committee

WHERE: Minnesota Senate Building – Room 1100, 95 University Ave. W, St. Paul

WHO: Chief author Sen. Carla Nelson, Members of Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation

MORE INFO: MSFG Fact Sheet: Adopt a Strong Tobacco 21 Law

FOLLOW: @smokefreegenMN

 

2:30 p.m. House HHS Policy Hearing on Flavored Tobacco, Kids in Cars

WHEN: Wednesday, February 26, 2020, 2:30 p.m. (only items on agenda)

WHAT:  House Health and Human Services Policy Committee

WHERE: State Office Building – Room 200, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul

WHO: Chief author HF3072, HHS Policy Chair Rena Moran, Chief author HF3032, Commerce Chair Laurie Halverson, Members of Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation

 

MORE INFO: MSFG Fact sheet: Prohibit the Sale of All Flavored Tobacco Products

CTFK Fact Sheet: Administration’s Policy Leaves Thousands of Flavored E-cigs on the Market

ANSR-MN Fact Sheet: Clean Air for Kids in Cars

FOLLOW: @smokefreegenMN

 

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation is a coalition of more than 60 organizations that share a common goal of reducing youth smoking and ending tobacco’s harm for good. In the 2020 Legislative Session, the coalition will promote a comprehensive approach to address tobacco’s harm. The coalition is united behind four major goals that reduce youth smoking and nicotine addiction, including increasing tobacco prices, raising the tobacco sale age to 21, prohibiting the sale of all flavored tobacco products and investing in tobacco prevention and cessation programs. The coalition also supports reducing exposure to dangerous secondhand smoke and e-cigarette aerosol.

About Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation is a coalition of more than 60 organizations that share a common goal of saving Minnesota youth from a lifetime of addiction to tobacco. The coalition supports policies that reduce youth smoking and nicotine addiction, including increasing tobacco prices, raising the tobacco sale age to 21, limiting access to candy-, fruit- and menthol-flavored tobacco, and funding tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

Partners include: The African American Leadership Forum, Allina Health, Allina Health | Aetna, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association in Minnesota, Apple Tree Dental, Association for Nonsmokers – Minnesota, Aurora/St. Anthony Neighborhood Development Corporation, Becker County Energized, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, A Breath of Hope Lung Foundation, Cancer Legal Care, CentraCare, Children’s Defense Fund-MN, Children’s Minnesota, ClearWay Minnesota^SM, Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio – CLUES, Dodge County Public Health, Education Minnesota, Essentia Health, Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare, A Healthier Southwest, HealthPartners, Hennepin Healthcare, Horizon Public Health, Indigenous Peoples Task Force, ISAIAH, JustUs Health, LAAMPP Alumni, Lake Region Healthcare, Local Public Health Association of Minnesota, LPCFC – Lincoln Park Children and Families Collaborative, March of Dimes, Mayo Clinic, Medica, Meeker McLeod Sibley Community Health Services, Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians, Minnesota Association of Community Health Centers, Minnesota Cancer Alliance, Minnesota Council of Health Plans, MHA – Minnesota Hospital Association, Minnesota Medical Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, Minnesota Oral Health Coalition, Minnesota Public Health Association, MNAAP – Minnesota Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, ModelCities, NAMI Minnesota, North Memorial Health, NorthPoint Health & Wellness, Olmsted Medical Center, Open Cities Health Center, PartnerSHIP 4 Health, Perham Health & Living, Preventing Tobacco Addiction Foundation, SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, ShiftMN, St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, Steele County Public Health, Tobacco-Free Alliance, Twin Cities Medical Society, UCare, Vision In Living Life – Change is Possible, WellShare International and Zumbro Valley Medical Society. Find out more at: smokefreegenmn.org.

 

P.S. If you missed it, earlier today we released a new poll that found wide support for these policies. View that release here: Minnesotans Overwhelmingly Support Tobacco Prevention