Photo: Chaiel Schaffel/WBZ NewsRadio
MEDFORD, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — As a litany of municipalities across the state consider a generational ban on tobacco sales, the city of Medford has decided to hold off voting on the measure.
The ban has been already been implemented in more than half a dozen towns across the state. Under the rule, no one born after a certain date will be able to purchase tobacco products. The goal is to phase out smoking forever.
"Obviously the hope is to keep tobacco products out of their hands by reducing access," Maureen Buzby, an advocate for the cause, said in a meeting with the Medford Board of Health on Tuesday.
Brookline was the first Massachusetts municipality to enact the ban. In Brookline, anyone born after Jan. 1, 2000 can no longer buy tobacco products. The ban went into effect in 2021.
Read More: Mayor Wu And BPS Superintendent Skipper Ride School Buses To Detect Delays
Their decision was upheld by the state's Supreme Judicial Court in March, and since then, a wave of other towns and cities have hopped on.
Not everyone is happy about this new trend, especially business owners. Peter Brennan is the Executive Director of the New England Convenience Store & Energy Marketers Association, and he's a vocal opponent of the ban.
"It is unfair, and it does seem like you're treating different generations of adults differently," Brennan said. He represents some 7,000 stores across New England, and said tobacco sales make up 25% of any one store's revenue.
Brennan said his group was considering a higher challenge to the local regulations, but that because the state supreme court had ruled on them already, all state avenues had been exhausted.
Along with Brookline, Stoneham, Wakefield, Melrose, Winchester, Malden and Reading have already enacted this ban.
WBZ NewsRadio's Chaiel Schaffel (@CSchaffelWBZ) reports.
Follow WBZ NewsRadio: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | iHeartmedia App | TikTok