Illinois Senate Approves Tobacco Purchasing Age Increase, Heads to Governor’s Desk

Illinois is one signature away from becoming the seventh state to require those purchasing tobacco to be at least 21.

Today, the Illinois Senate voted 39-16 in favor of H.B. 0345, which passed the Illinois House earlier this week. The bill, which would increase the minimum age to purchase tobacco from 18 to 21, now moves to the desk of Gov. J.B. Pritzker. a Democrat who has not explicitly said whether he supports the effort.

This is the second time in as many years that the Illinois General Assembly has passed a measure. Last year, both chambers passed a similar bill only to have it vetoed by then-Gov. Bruce Rauner. the Senate voted to override Rauner’s veto, but the House did not.

Six states have already approved measures to raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco to 21, as has Cook County, which includes Chicago.

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. I previously co-founded and published TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry for more than a decade, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. In addition, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff here at halfwheel. I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.