After a few delays, the Oregon Senate finally took a full vote on a measure that would raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco from 18 to 21.
It passed, 19-8.
The bill, S.B. 754, now moves to the House, where it will need to pass, before making its way to Gov. Kate Brown’s desk.
It was one of two bills proposed in Oregon that would have raised the minimum purchasing age of tobacco products from 18 to 21. The other, H.B. 2024, would also impose new taxes, though there has been no action on that bill since it has been introduced.
Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, D-Beaverton, is the main sponsor of S.B. 754. She told The Oregonian that she expects the bill to pass in the House.
If passed, Oregon would join California and Hawaii as the only states where you must be 21 to purchase tobacco, though a host of other states are considering similar measures.