A new generation of the same old nicotine policy mistakes

The newest trend in tobacco policy is so-called “Nicotine-Free Generation” laws, which ban anyone born on or after a certain date, say, Jan. 1, 2004, from ever buying a commercial nicotine product like a vape, cigarette, cigar, or nicotine pouch.

Advocates portray these bans as child protection policies, but it is already illegal to sell any nicotine product to anyone under age 21. So how does banning a future 30-year-old from buying a cigar protect today’s 15-year-old?

The obvious answer is it doesn’t.

Generational nicotine bans don’t add a single new protection for today’s minors. By design, they restrict tomorrow’s adults from making their own choices.

If there were a widespread and persistent youth nicotine crisis, perhaps such drastic, but still misguided, action might be more understandable from policymakers. However, young people aren’t smoking as much as they used to.

According to the Food and Drug Administration’s 2025 National Youth Tobacco Survey, which surveyed more than 23,000 students, youth nicotine use is at its lowest level in 25 years. Youth cigarette smoking has plummeted, and just 1.8 percent of high school students were current smokers when the survey was taken.

Similarly, policymakers have been worried that teen vaping was going to be an epidemic, but high school e-cigarette use has fallen dramatically. Just 7.1% of U.S. high school students reported vaping in the last 30 days, down significantly from 27.5% in 2019.

Despite the positive data and reduced use, policymakers continue to push for generational bans. History shows these bans drive people across county and state lines or into unregulated, illegal markets.

When Massachusetts banned flavored tobacco in 2020, demand didn’t disappear. Reason Foundation and other researchers found flavored tobacco sales surged across the border in New Hampshire and Rhode Island. Massachusetts lost at least $125 million in tobacco tax revenue in a single fiscal year due to the flavored vaping ban. The state’s task force reported that seizures of illegal vapes exploded from 72,000 in 2022 to more than 308,000 in 2024. The increase was so much that the task force says it struggles to store and safely destroy them. Adult smoking rates in Massachusetts, meanwhile, barely budged.

The nation of Bhutan tried a more straightforward, traditional prohibition in 2004, banning all tobacco products nationwide. A huge black market quickly emerged, and the failed ban was repealed in 2021.

Almost 50 million American adults use nicotine products, with almost half of those using products other than cigarettes. It’s simply not credible to claim that there will be little or no demand for nicotine in the future.

Americans should also remember alcohol Prohibition and the costly, failed war on drugs. A generational ban on nicotine, while different in some ways, does not differ in substance. The sweeping nature of Nicotine-Free Generation bans is nonsensical. The FDA recognizes that some tobacco products are much riskier than others. Cigarettes are at the deadly end, while products like e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches carry a fraction of the health risks and dangers.

Yes, nicotine products, like caffeine products, are addictive. However, it’s perfectly legitimate for adults to weigh the trade-offs and choose to use them.

Nicotine-Free Generation bans create something troubling and alien to American law: two different, permanent classes of adults. One group of adults would have full freedom because they were born before an arbitrary date, while adults born after that date, even when they are 30 or 60 years old, would permanently have fewer rights.

Once legislators accept that principle, why stop at nicotine? Alcohol, gambling, and processed food all have would-be prohibitionists waiting in the wings.

Ultimately, generational nicotine bans undermine adult freedom and ignore prohibition’s failures. The bans risk fueling illegal markets and establishing a dangerous legal precedent of unequal rights based on birth year. Policymakers should enforce existing laws rather than pursue these misguided, discriminatory bans.

A version of this column first appeared at the DC Journal.

The post A new generation of the same old nicotine policy mistakes appeared first on Reason Foundation.

Source: https://reason.org/commentary/counterpoint-a-new-generation-of-the-same-old-mistake/