An Ohio law that prohibits cities from banning the sale of flavored tobacco products has been ruled unconstitutional.
The state is expected to appeal Friday's ruling by Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Mark Serotto, who had issued a temporary restraining order in April that stopped the law from taking effect. The bill was passed in January after the Republican Legislature overrode Republican Gov. Mike DeWine's veto of a budget bill that would have placed regulatory powers in the hands of the state.
The ruling follows a lawsuit brought by more than a dozen cities, including Columbus and Cincinnati, and Cerotto's decision means those cities' bans remain in effect. However, the ruling only applies to those cities and is not a statewide injunction.
The bill, which was vetoed and reintroduced into the state budget in 2022, says the state, not local governments, should regulate tobacco and alternative nicotine products. It also prevented the community from voting to restrict things like the sale of flavored e-cigarettes or flavored e-cigarette products.
Lawmakers passed the 2022 bill days after Ohio's capital, Columbus, lifted a ban on the sale of flavored tobacco and menthol tobacco products that would have been enacted earlier this year.
Anti-tobacco advocacy groups, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, and DeWine himself have argued that the repeal comes as cigarette and e-cigarette products made with fruit and candy flavors are becoming more popular and available. criticized the tobacco industry, saying it was a victory for the tobacco industry and enabling children to become addicted to it. The kids.
Opponents of the bill argued, in part, that it violated Ohio's Home Rule Code, which allows local governments to enact their own ordinances as long as they do not interfere with the state's revised law. Cerotto agreed, acknowledging that the law's sole purpose is to prevent cities from exercising their autonomy.
Senate President Matt Huffman said during the override vote that lawmakers had carefully reviewed the language with the Legislative Services Committee, a nonpartisan body that drafts bills for the General Assembly, and that he did not believe it would affect all possible tobacco control measures for local governments.
Supporters of the bill tout it as a way to maintain uniformity in tobacco laws and eliminate confusion for Ohioans. They argue that restrictions on products should be controlled by the state, not local communities, because they affect the state's overall revenue.
DeWine argues that the best way to ensure uniformity among these laws is to ban flavored tobacco statewide.
