On Tuesday, the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved legislation, H.R. 2399, which would ban flavors in tobacco and increase the legal age of purchase of tobacco to 21. In spite of efforts by some Republican members of Congress to amend the bill to exclude menthol from the ban, and other proposed amendments to create a carveout for 18 year olds in the military to purchase tobacco, the bill was approved by the panel by a vote of 28-24, essentially in its original form. Members who opposed the bill pointed to concerns that the bill would push teens to the black market for vaping products and pointed out that the bill doesn’t address the illicit sale of THC-containing products that have been linked to 2000 illnesses nationwide.

CDA and its members lobbied members of the Energy and Commerce Committee directly, urging them to carefully consider the impact a menthol ban would have on the convenience distribution industry. The next step for the bill will be consideration by the full House of Representatives. There is a likely backstop in the Senate, as Majority Leader Mitch McConnell controls the Senate schedule and has his own measure to raise the minimum age of purchase for tobacco products.