This blog was coauthored by Adolph P. Falcón, MPP; Executive Vice President, Healthy Americas Foundation.
Given recent Food and Drug Administration actions authorizing certain fruit-flavored electronic cigarette products, cities are navigating a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape while working to protect youth from nicotine addiction.
Across the country, flavored nicotine products are driving youth addiction. A new policy brief from the NLC and the Healthy Americas Foundation, 4 Practical Steps Cities Can Take Now to Protect Youth from Flavored Tobacco, finds that one in six high school students currently use e-cigarettes and almost nine in 10 high school e-cigarette users report using flavored products, making flavors a primary driver of youth nicotine addiction.
The tobacco industry spends roughly $1 million per hour on retail promotions and discounts, outspending state and local prevention efforts at a rate of 12 to 1. The industry also concentrates marketing in lower-income and racial and ethnic communities. That’s why policy—not just education—is essential. More than 375 localities (PDF) have already enacted restrictions on flavored tobacco sales. Cities that act now can protect youth, reduce inequities, and strengthen community wellbeing.
May 31st is World No Tobacco Day, dedicated to countering the marketing that’s driving nicotine addiction among youth worldwide. Across multiple administrations, federal bans on menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars remain stalled; however, local leaders don’t have to wait. Below are four practical strategies cities can use right now, along with real-world examples and clear steps to get started.
1. Restrict flavored tobacco sales near schools and youth spaces
What it is: Policies that limit sales of flavored tobacco products within a set distance (e.g., 500 feet) of schools, parks, and other places where youth gather.
Retailers are disproportionately concentrated in lower-income neighborhoods and near schools. Chicago restricts flavored tobacco sales, including menthol, within 500 feet of schools to reduce youth exposure and access. A 30-city study by the National Cancer Institute-funded ASPiRE Center found that retailer density is nearly five times higher in the lowest-income neighborhoods, and 70% of city residents live within a 10‑minute walk of a tobacco retailer.
Get started:
- Map tobacco retailers near schools, parks, and youth centers using GIS.
- Identify high-density areas with the greatest youth exposure.
- Work with planning or legal staff to draft a buffer ordinance.
- Engage school leaders and families early to build support.
City Example: Chicago Municipal Code § 4‑64‑515
2. License tobacco retailers and reduce overconcentration
What it is: Policies that require tobacco retailers to obtain a local license and comply with youth protective rules, such as spacing requirements or caps on the number of retailers. Licensing gives cities oversight, enforcement tools, and a way to gradually reduce retailer density. Philadelphia limits tobacco retail permits to one per 1,000 residents and prohibits new retailers within 500 feet of schools, reducing tobacco retail density and protecting youth.
Get started:
- Review your city’s current licensing authority.
- Add conditions tied to youth protection
- Cap permits or establish spacing requirements.
- Align enforcement across health and code departments.
City Example: Philadelphia—Tobacco retailer permit eligibility & map
3. Adopt comprehensive bans on flavored tobacco products
What it is: Policies that prohibit the sale of all flavored tobacco products, including menthol, without exemptions.
Comprehensive bans are associated with declines in youth use and overall tobacco sales. San Francisco’s comprehensive flavor ban led to 12% declines in the use of flavored tobacco and e-cigarettes among 18-24 year olds.
Get started:
- Assess state preemption laws.
- Start with partial restrictions if needed.
- Engage legal counsel early.
- Provide retailers with clear guidance and phase-in timelines.
City Example: San Francisco Health Code—Article 19Q: Prohibiting the Sale of Flavored Tobacco Products
4. Partner with schools to implement supportive, nonpunitive school policies
What it is: School policies that keep campuses tobacco-free while focusing on education and cessation, not punishment.
While cities don’t control school districts, they play an important role in convening and fostering partnerships. Duval County Public Schools in Jacksonville, Fla., uses an alternative-to-suspension approach for tobacco and vaping violations, connecting students to cessation resources instead of suspending them. The school district includes a tobacco education course in its district’s middle and high school Code of Student Conduct handbook. Students who violate the district’s tobacco-free campus policy must take the course at no cost.
Get started:
- Convene school leaders, public health staff, and youth services.
- Share model policies and cessation resources to replace punitive responses with referral-based approaches (e.g., counseling, cessation programs, or health education).
- Connect schools to local quitlines.
- Pilot supportive approaches in select schools.
City Example: Case study on Duval County Public Schools’ alternative-to-suspension approach (PDF)
Why Local Action Matters Now
Equitable enforcement is key. Effective policies focus accountability on retailers, not youth, and avoid criminalization that can deepen harm.
Cities have multiple pathways to act, even in states with preemption. Licensing, zoning, and school partnerships remain powerful tools to reduce youth exposure and access.
Local leaders already have a proven playbook. Whether you restrict sales near schools, license retailers, adopt a comprehensive ban, or partner with schools, each step reduces youth exposure and advances equity. You can view the 4 Practical Steps policy brief or contact the Healthy Americas Foundation for more information and support in your efforts.
Protecting youth from flavored tobacco is more than a public health intervention. It’s a commitment to building communities where every young person has a fair opportunity to live, learn and thrive.
Read the Fact Sheet
Download the corresponding fact sheet to get started today on protecting your community’s youth from flavored tobacco products.
Este recurso también está disponible en español.
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