Contra Costa County’s ban on the sale and delivery of electronic smoking devices and cannabis e-liquids will remain in place, the board of supervisors decided Tuesday.
The vote was 4-1, with District 4 supervisor Karen Mitchoff voting no.
Supervisors enacted the ban in 2019, targeting flavored vapes that appealed to children and vaping products that have not been reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The ban only applies in unincorporated areas.
In May, the board asked county health officials to come back with information on what has changed since the ban, including updated safety information on new products and updated state and federal regulations. The answers were not enough to change the board’s collective mind.
District 5 supervisor Federal Glover said the vote sends a message to young people “that we’re paying attention.”
“It’s just too early to make decisions based on the unknown and that there’s still an opportunity for research to be done looking at what’s going on at the state and national level,” Glover said.
Staff recommended keeping the ban in place, though they laid out other options, including crafting a new ordinance with varying levels of restrictions. One option would be to allow vaping devices for medical use, for which the current ordinance doesn’t allow.