Berkeley, Calif. OKs Tobacco Purchase Age Increase

The Berkeley City Council gave its unanimous approval to a proposal to raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco products and electronic cigarettes from 18 to 21 at its meeting on Tuesday, but it wasn’t without a bit of hesitation as to concerns over legal challenges that may come from the tobacco industry.

Cognizant that Healdsburg, Calif. recently suspended enforcement of the age increase passed in Oct. 2014, the council acknowledged that it might have to revisit the change, which would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2017 should it not be repealed or otherwise challenged before that date.

After passing its age increase, Healdsburg city leaders received letters from the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO) protesting the change and asserting that cities lacked the authority to raise the minimum purchase age from what the state sets. Healdsburg has asked the California Attorney General for guidance on the matter but has yet to receive a response, according to discussions held during the meeting.

Berkeley is located 10 miles northeast of San Francisco, which is also considering a similar age increase. It is home to just under 117,000 residents as well as the University of California at Berkeley, which has an undergraduate population of just over 27,000 students.