June 9, 2020
Paradise town council bans sale of flavored tobacco
The Paradise town council has banned the sale of flavored tobacco products in the town. On June 9, the council voted to have staff come back for a second reading with an ordinance that would set in place a ban on the sale of the product.
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Altria Client Services today announced that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted and filed for substantive review premarket tobacco product applications for 35 on! ® products manufactured by Helix Innovations LLC, an Altria joint venture responsible for the global on! ® nicotine pouch product portfolio.
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STOUGHTON, Mass. — Tobacco sales in Massachusetts convenience stores are down less than a week after the state’s ban on flavored tobacco took effect. As of June 1, the sale of flavored combustible cigarettes and other tobacco products—including menthol cigarettes and flavored chewing tobacco—is restricted to licensed smoking bars where they can be sold for on-site consumption, according to the state law. The New England Convenience Store & Energy Marketers Association (NECSEMA), Stoughton, Mass., tried to delay the ban in May, given the hardships caused by the coronavirus pandemic, but was unsuccessful. Nik DiMambro, category manager at Worcester, Mass.-based Nouria Energy Corp., and Leo Vercollone, CEO of VERC Enterprises, Duxbury, Mass., each said tobacco sales at c-stores in bordering states, like New Hampshire, have increased since June 1 while tobacco sales in Massachusetts are down. “It’s really early,” Vercollone told CSPDaily News on June 4. “But, with that being said, we’re down double digits in menthol cigarettes.” Cigarette and other tobacco product (OTP) sales were down about 12% at his Massachusetts stores compared to last year, Vercollone said. However, in the first few days of June, tobacco sales at two of his stores on the New Hampshire border were up about 40%, he said.
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Vaping advocates are pushing back in federal court against a newly enacted Palmdale city ordinance banning the sale of flavored e-cigarette products, court papers obtained Monday show.
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June 8, 2020
Courts Extend FDA PMTA Application Deadline
As previously reported in CStore Decisions, the U.S. Department of Justice, on behalf of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), submitted letters on March 30, 2020, to the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland and the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit with a request for a 120-day extension of the court-ordered May 12, 2020, pre-market tobacco product authorization (PMTA) application filing deadline.
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Health educator Aftan Jameson encountered one student during a 2 1/2-year period who walked into the University of Kansas’ health center looking for help kicking a vaping nicotine habit.
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New Jersey lawmakers have introduced a bill that would decrease punishments for marijuana possession from arrests to fines, reviving a years-long effort as the nation grapples with racial bias and brutality in policing. The new bill, S2535, introduced to the state Senate Thursday afternoon, would decriminalize possession and distribution of less than one pound of weed, but would not make marijuana legal. Violators would receive a written warning for a first offense and a face fines of $25 for second and subsequent offenses.
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June 8, 2020
Spouses of government employees could get Michigan medical marijuana licenses under bill
Michigan lawmakers want to loosen restrictions on who is able to possess a medical marijuana business license to now include the spouses of government employees. The current rules, created within the 2016 Medical Marijuana Facilities Licensing Act, forbid the spouse of any government employee or elected official from being issued a medical marijuana business license by the state Marijuana Regulatory Agency. It’s not clear how many times this has become a reason to deny an application or revoke a license.
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June 8, 2020
New Mexico Marijuana Legalization Effort Gets Boost From Ouster Of Anti-Reform Senators
Several key New Mexico state senators who have helped to block marijuana legalization legislation are on their way out after Tuesday’s primary election. The secretary of state has called at least major four races where progressive challengers in districts across the state have won their contests against conservative-leaning incumbents. The Senate president pro tem, Finance Committee chair and several other lawmakers who remain opposed to adult-use legalization were rejected by Democratic voters.
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Authorities on the largest Native American reservation in the U.S. are warning people against illegally growing marijuana and hemp. Navajo Nation police issued the warning Wednesday after confirming that officers were investigating complaints about marijuana or hemp being grown near the northwestern New Mexico community of Shiprock. Police Chief Phillip Francisco says his department has turned over its findings to tribal prosecutors for further review.
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