Politics & Government

WI Tobacco Purchasing Age Raised To 21 Under Bill, Follows Federal Law

Federal law makes it illegal for retailers to sell tobacco products like cigarettes and vapes to people under the age of 21.

WISCONSIN — Tobacco sales to people under 21 will be illegal in the Badger State under a bill that passed the Wisconsin State Assembly on Wednesday.

The age for buying tobacco products like tobacco and nicotine products like cigarettes, cigars and vapes will be raised from 18 to 21, the bill text said.

The bipartisan bill will have to pass through the state senate and be signed by the governor before becoming a state law.

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Tobacco 21, the federal law that makes it illegal for retailers to sell tobacco to people 21 and under, was signed by former President Donald Trump in December 2019.

Tobacco was the leading cause of preventable death in Wisconsin and cost the state more than $4.6 billion a year in health care and lost productivity expenses, the Department of Health Services said in December 2021.

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