The New York City Council today passed seven bills that will take dramatic action to reduce the use of dangerous tobacco products in New York and to save lives.
In April, city leaders announced their support of a comprehensive tobacco control legislative package and a goal to reduce the number of smokers in New York City by 160,000 over the next three years. The City projects that this would result in a decrease in smoking rates to a historically low rate of 12 percent.
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) New York Metro Government Relations Director Michael Davoli released the following statement:
“I applaud the council and mayor for drafting this package of strong public health bills. Tobacco use is the number one cause of preventable death, taking the lives of approximately 12,000 New Yorkers annually. Mayor de Blasio and City Council Health Chair Corey Johnson have taken note of this stark statistic and have worked together to dramatically lower that number. This helps move New York toward Mayor de Blasio’s goal to cut premature death by 25 percent by 2040, while dramatically reducing racial and ethnic disparities in mortality rates.
“In an effort to turn the tide on tobacco-related illnesses, New York City has led a successful effort for more than a decade to reduce smoking rates. By regular and significant tobacco tax increases, implementing comprehensive smoke-free and tobacco-free policies and funding evidence-based, citywide tobacco use prevention and cessation programs, New York City has driven smoking rates to historic lows and protected our communities from secondhand smoke. Once enacted, these seven bills will once again put New York City in the forefront of protecting its residents, workers and visitors from putting their lives and health at risk.
“Among the major goals of these bills is to reduce the number of retailers in order to reduce access to tobacco products especially by young people. According to a recent ACS CAN report, there are 3.5 times more tobacco retailers than schools and pizzerias and such high numbers greatly increase the likelihood of a New Yorker becoming a smoker, and thus suffering from tobacco related death and disease.
“We thank Mayor de Blasio, Health Chair Johnson, and Council Members Brad Lander, Fernando Cabrera, Ritchie Torres, and James Vacca for developing this legislation and look forward to working with them and the other council members to save lives and protect health.”
The bills would establish a:
Sponsored by: Corey D. Johnson
This bill would establish a minimum price for all tobacco products; increase the minimum price of cigarettes from $10.50 to $13; and establish a 10 percent tax on all non-cigarette tobacco products with the revenue going toward public housing
Sponsored by: Brad S. Lander
This bill would establish a cap on the number of licensed tobacco retail outlets at 50 percent of the current number and includes all tobacco products.
Sponsored by: Brad S. Lander
This bill would restrict pharmacies, or retail stores that contain pharmacies, from selling cigarettes or other tobacco products.
Sponsored by: Corey D. Johnson
This bill would raise the biennial fee for a Cigarette Retail Dealer License from $110 to $200. This license is required to sell cigarettes directly to consumers.
Sponsored by: Fernando Cabrera
This bill would require a license to sell electronic cigarettes, similar to the license that is currently required to sell cigarettes.
Sponsored by: Ritchie Torres
This bill would require rental apartment buildings, as well as co-op and condo buildings, to create a smoking policy for the building. It would not dictate the contents of this policy. This policy would be required to be provided annually to tenants, and incorporated into leases and purchase agreements.
Sponsored by: James Vacca
This bill would prohibit smoking and the use of electronic cigarettes in common areas in multiple dwellings with fewer than ten units. These activities are already illegal in common areas in multiple dwellings with ten or more units.
About ACS CAN
ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit www.fightcancer.org.