There is a common saying in politics, that “your vote matters.” With the 2024 elections, both on the national and local level, there is truth to that statement. It is also true that in engagement on legislative issues “your voice matters.”
Never has it been more important to make your position known to elected officials and federal, state and local regulators on tobacco and nicotine issues. You only need to look at the tobacco issues that government has considered over the past year.
On the federal level, the finalization of two proposed rules, one banning menthol in cigarettes and the other banning flavored cigars, were withdrawn by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) earlier this year. This action was after the Biden administration delayed the finalization of the rules after they “garnered historic attention and the public comment period has yielded an immense amount of feedback, including from various elements of the civil rights and criminal justice movement,” according to a Department of Health & Human Services statement on April 26, 2024. This decision was a result of the over 250,000 public comments that were received, the overwhelming majority of which were in opposition to the proposed rules.
State Level Engagement
On the state level in 2025, approximately 10 states are considering banning the sale of all flavored tobacco products. To date, none of the states have enacted these proposals after hearing from tobacco retailers about the unintended consequences and inconsistencies of banning flavored tobacco, including increasing illicit trade and decimating state tax revenues. As an example, Oregon has held multiple public hearings on a statewide flavor ban, where many retailers have testified citing that the bill “unfairly” punishes law-abiding citizens and businesses, creating opportunities for the illicit market to thrive, and would lead to job losses and store closures.
Last fall, the city of Kansas City, Mo., also attempted, for a second time, to ban flavored tobacco products. This has again been thwarted in the face of opposition from retailers and others. The headline in the Kansas City Star on Oct. 31, 2024, read, “Facing pressure from local businesses, Kansas City puts brakes on flavored tobacco ban.”
Advocacy Matters
So why is advocacy important? Quite simply, elected officials more often than not listen to the concerns of their constituents. In particular, retailers that sell tobacco and nicotine products employ residents of elected officials’ communities, pay taxes, sponsor local youth programs and other initiatives, run brick-and-mortar operations that provide economic benefits to their districts, and sell other consumer products that are vital to the broader population. Hearing from these businesses on the impact of various tobacco and nicotine proposals influences legislators’ and regulators’ decision-making processes.
The National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO) encourages all stakeholders to make their voices heard. There are multiple ways to contact legislators and regulators — sending letters, calling their offices, posting on social media platforms and providing testimony at hearings are just some of the ways to politely but directly let them know your thoughts. NATO will continue to be engaged on these issues as well and provide retailers with tools to help them address these proposals with advocacy messages and tactics.
David Spross is the executive director of the National Association of Tobacco Outlets, a national retail trade association that represents more than 66,000 stores throughout the country.
