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Businesses attempt to block Wisconsin e-cigarette ban
Wisconsin e-cigarette retailers are suing the state over a law that requires electronic vaping devices to be authorized by the FDA before they can be sold.
FOND DU LAC, Wis. - A Wisconsin law could put some vape shops out of business and some retailers are now suing the state over it.
What we know:
The law, passed back in 2023, states only products with FDA approval can be sold in Wisconsin. Starting Sept. 1, they could be fined $1,000 a day for selling unauthorized vapes.
Wisconsinites for Alternatives to Smoking and Tobacco, Inc. (WiscoFAST) filed a lawsuit on June 30 to block the statewide ban on vaping.
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For the past seven years, Zach Rozenboom has been focused on his Fond du Lac vape shop, the Supply Plus. But lately, he's been worried about losing it all.
"The industry is growing, the devices have progressed quite a ways," Rozenboom said. "It’s scary, but we’ve been here before. This industry is under fire pretty consistently."
Rozenboom is part of the group of retailers now suing the Wisconsin Department of Revenue, saying it's over-stepping.
By the numbers:
"84% of the products that we sell would fall under this law," Rozenboom said. "Essentially eliminating our options for business."
According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, 6.7% of adults in Wisconsin reported using e-cigarettes.
Dr. Hasmeena Kathuriah is the Director for the UW Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention, which is part of the UW School of Medicine and Public Health.
"For people who have never smoked, vaping is clearly associated with harm," Kathuriah said. "We’re learning a lot and we can say there are clearly health effects for e-cigarettes."
Dig deeper:
Shop owners like Rozenboom are focused on staying afloat, hoping this new law goes up in smoke.
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"We don’t disagree with regulation," he said. "We just want reasonable and responsible regulation."
A similar law was recently blocked in Iowa.
What they're saying:
FOX6 News reached out to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Officials issued the following statement:
"The Department of Revenue believes the law requiring all vape products sold in Wisconsin to have received authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is constitutional and will defend the law in court. The law still allows retailers and distributors to sell legal nicotine and hemp vape devices to their customers."
The CDC said youth use of e-cigarettes is at its lowest level in a decade.
The Source: The information in this post was collected and produced by FOX6 News.