NEW: Multnomah County Seeks Public Input on Possible E-Cigarette Regulations

Email to a friend Permalink

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Briauna Skye McKizzie, GoLocalPDX Contributor

The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners are seeking public comment, after a public hearing Jan. 27 to discuss the health risks and regulations of e-cigarette distribution and consumption.

At previous county board meetings revealed that county had the highest rate of illegal tabacoo and e-cigarette sales in the state, according Multnomah County spokeswoman Julie Sullivan-Springhetti.

E-cigarette sales are unregulated and unmonitored causing concern amongst the board members in regards to the potential negative impact the product might have on minors and the environment, Sullivan-Springhetti said.

Since retailers are not licensed, they are not readily identified by health departments.

The Health Department and Oregon Health Equity Alliance has recommended the following policy changes:

The possible steps that will be put into place are:

• Prohibiting e-cigarette sales to minors
• Adding information about e-cigarettes in the Oregon Clean Air Act
• Making licenses to sell tobacco and e-cigarette product mandatory for retailers.

If unable to attend the any of these meetings, recordings and the minutes can be accessed here, officials said. 

Multnomah County public hearing, Jan. 27 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Multnomah Building, 501 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd., 

Related Articles

• Publicly Funded Elections Should Treat All Oregonians Equally
• Portland’s Green Endeavor Inc. Helps Chemical Company Reduce Environmental Footprint

Enjoy this post? Share it with others.

Email to a friend Permalink