City of San FranciscoProposition E Ordinance - Majority Approval Required
Shall the City ordinance prohibiting the sale of flavored tobacco products in San Francisco take effect?
What is this proposal?
Pros & Cons — Unbiased explanation with arguments for and against
The Question
The Situation
Passage of this proposition would prohibit tobacco retailers from selling flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes. The current age to purchase tobacco products is 21 in the state of California. In 2017, the Board of Supervisors adopted an ordinance prohibiting the sale in San Francisco of flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes and candy-flavored tobacco products. A referendum was filed requiring that the Ordinance be submitted to the voters. The ordinance will not go into effect unless a majority of voters approve.
The Proposal
Proposition E is a Referendum to approve the Ordinance passed by the Board of Supervisors prohibiting the sale of flavored tobacco products in San Francisco. The Ordinance will not go into effect unless a majority of voters approve.
A “YES” Vote Means: You want to prohibit the sale of flavored tobacco products in San Francisco.
A “NO” Vote Means: You want to allow the sale of flavored tobacco products in San Francisco.
Supporters say
¡ Flavored tobacco masks its true taste, making it easier for people to start using tobacco products and harder for current users to quit.
¡ Over 80% of children who report having used tobacco claim to have started with a flavored product.
¡ Proposition E would thwart tobacco companies’ attempt to appeal to children and hook them into addiction at young ages.
Opponents say
¡ Banning the sale of flavored tobacco products could result in the development of underground markets, thereby increasing the likelihood that children will gain access to the products.
¡ It is currently illegal for retailers to sell flavored tobacco to anyone under the age of 21, therefore, prohibition of the sale of flavored tobacco products only prohibits purchase by adults.
¡ The measure is misleadingly written and doesn’t explain the wide variety of products that the passing of the measure would affect.
Details — Official information
YES vote means
A “YES” Vote Means: If you vote "yes," you want to prohibit the sale of flavored tobacco products in San Francisco.
NO vote means
A “NO” Vote Means: If you vote "no," you want to allow the sale of flavored tobacco products in San Francisco.
Summary
Ballot Simplification Committee
The Way It Is Now: In 2017, the Board of Supervisors adopted an Ordinance prohibiting the sale in San Francisco of flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes and candy-flavored tobacco products.
A referendum was filed requiring that the Ordinance be submitted to the voters. The Ordinance will not go into effect unless a majority of voters approve.
The Proposal: Proposition E is a Referendum to approve the Ordinance passed by the Board of Supervisors prohibiting the sale of flavored tobacco products in San Francisco.
Financial effect
City Controller Ben Rosenfield
City Controller Ben Rosenfield has issued the following statement on the fiscal impact of Proposition E:
Should the proposed referendum be approved by the voters, in my opinion, it would have an unknown impact on the cost of government.
In 2017 the Board of Supervisors approved an amendment to the Health Code to ban the sale of flavored tobacco products in the City. If the referendum is approved, that ban will take effect in 2018.
A ban on flavored tobacco products in the City can be expected to reduce somewhat the use of tobacco in San Francisco, cause some users to switch to tobacco products not affected by the ban, and cause some users to buy tobacco products at other retailers outside the City. Because of these effects, the City may experience a loss of sales tax revenue from tobacco retailers. At the same time, the City may experience long-term and short-term decreases in the cost of public health, litter control and other public services affected by smoking and by uses of flavored tobacco products.
