New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has used a pocket veto to defeat a bill that would raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco products from 19 to 21-years-old.

After sitting on the proposal for more than a year, the New Jersey Assembly hurried it through committee meetings and onto the floor, where it was approved by a 49-20 vote earlier this month. The state senate approved its version of the bill in June 2014. While the governor has yet to issue a statement on it, he has generally preferred to leave decisions regarding tobacco sales and usage to individual municipalities in the state. In Sept. 2014, he vetoed a bill that would have banned smoking at all beaches in the state.

With Christie’s veto, Hawaii remains the only state in the country where a person must be at least 21-years-old to purchase tobacco.

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Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.