Tobacco Purchase Age Increase Appears to Have Go-Ahead in Amherst, Mass.

After falling off the priority list last year, a proposal to raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21-years-old in Amherst, Mass. came back for consideration this spring. While it’s now a priority for the town’s board of health, opposing the proposal doesn’t appear to be a priority for any of the town’s residents as no one showed up to speak against it at a community meeting on Thursday.

The meeting did draw three people to speak in support of the increase, according to the Daily Hampshire Gazette, while the lone voice of opposition came via a letter from an Arizona law firm that represents the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO).

The board is likely to vote on the matter at its May 14 meeting, when it will also likely consider several other tobacco-related regulations, including allowing board to regulate any non-regulated nicotine delivery as it does with tobacco, setting a minimum price of $5 for packages of two or more cigars, prohibiting the sale of tobacco by stores within 500 feet of a school and banning the sale of flavored tobacco products and e-juice by package and convenience stores.

Amherst is home to approximately 35,000 residents and is located about 90 miles west of Boston.