Pekin, Ill. Deadlocks on Tobacco Purchasing Age Increase

The Pekin City Council couldn’t reach a majority on a proposal to raise the tobacco purchasing age to 21-years-old, deadlocking at 3-3 with one member absent.

On Monday night, the council took up the matter as part of its new business agenda, but could not reach a majority decision as to how to proceed. The increase would have also applied to electronic cigarettes and other tobacco alternative products, and would have increased the minimum age for legal possession of tobacco and tobacco alternatives 21-years-old as well.

While the council couldn’t reach a decision, the minimum age to purchase tobacco could still go up, as the Illinois Legislature is slated to once again consider a bill to raise the age to 21 statewide. A similar bill was approved last year, only to be vetoed by former Gov. Bruce Rauner and unable to be overridden by the House of Representatives.

Pekin is located just south of Peoria and approximately 170 miles southwest of Chicago. It is home to approximately 33,000 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 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.