Marin County, Calif. Bans Sale of Flavored Tobacco

A complete ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products, including vaping liquids and menthol cigarettes, will be coming to Marin County, Calif. over the next year or so.

On Tuesday, the Marin County Board of Supervisors voted to add a chapter to the Marin County Code that spells out the restriction. The county joins several neighboring cities that have passed legislation limiting flavored tobacco products, including San Francisco, Novato, Fairfax and Sausalito.

The first part of the ban will go into effect on July 1, 2019, which is when retailers other than specialty tobacco stores in the unincorporated parts of the county will be prohibited from selling flavored tobacco products, including vaping liquids and menthol cigarettes. For tobacco specialty stores, they will be prohibited from selling those products as of Jan. 1, 2020.

“This represents a crisis right now,” said Damon Connolly, President of the Marin County Board of Supervisors. “Big Tobacco is clearly doing targeted marketing strategies that in effect create a gateway to addiction. So I think we’re doing the right thing today. It’s a positive for public health.”

Marin County is located directly north of San Francisco and has a population of approximately 261,000 residents.

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, the G-League's Valley Suns, and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for Major League Baseball, 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.