Legislators in Pope County will be putting an increase to the tobacco purchasing age under the tree this year after the county’s board of supervisors unanimously approved a Tobacco 21 ordinance at its Dec. 7 meeting.

The increase is scheduled to go into effect after minutes of the meeting are approved and the ordinance is published in the local newspaper, which could be as early as Dec. 24. It does not make a change to the minimum age to possess such products, which remains 18-years-old.

Pope County is home to approximately 11,000 residents. It is located in the western part of the state, approximately 130 miles northwest of Minneapolis.

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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.