Bismarck, N.D. Raises Tobacco Purchasing Age to 21

As the country adjusts to the new federal minimum age to purchase tobacco products being changed to 21, cities, counties and states continue to pass their own legislation in order to come into compliance and allow local police and other agencies to enforce the law.

On Tuesday night, the Bismarck City Council approved an ordinance to bring the city’s laws up to date, a change that will go into effect immediately. As part of the ordinance, if a business sells tobacco or e-cigarette products to a person under 21-years-old, both the retailer and the individual responsible for the transaction could face a fine.

The ordinance also changes the age to possess or use tobacco products from 18 to 21-years-old.

On Wednesday morning, the FDA announced that while the minimum age to purchase tobacco and e-cigarettes is 21 and it is illegal for anyone to sell such products to a person under 21, the agency will continue to enforcing a minimum of 18-years-old during what it referred to as a “ramp-up period.”

Bismarck is the capitol of North Dakota and has a population of just over 73,000 residents. It is the second biggest city in the state behind Fargo.

On Dec. 21, 2019, President Trump signed H.R. 1865, a $1.4 trillion spending bill that also increased the minimum age to purchase tobacco products from 18 to 21.

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has stated that upon signing, the new law went into effect immediately. It is halfwheel’s understanding that while the law might have changed, FDA likely lacks the authority to enforce the 21-years-old minimum age standard until after a few procedural steps, which likely would be completed by the midway point of 2020. However, the Premium Cigar Association (PCA), National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) have advised their retail members to comply with the increase to 21 as a precautionary measure.

FDA has stated that it is not yet enforcing the 21-years-old standard through its compliance checks program.