Do E-Cigarette Retail Licensure Laws Reduce Tobacco Use?

Abstract

E-cigarette licensure laws (ELLs) require retailers to obtain a state license to sell e-cigarettes over the counter. This study is the first to comprehensively explore the effect of ELL adoption on youth and adult tobacco product use. Using data from the State Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) and a difference-in-differences approach, we find no evidence that ELL adoption reduces overall youth ENDS use. The precision of our estimates allows us to rule out, with 95 percent confidence, ELL-induced prior-month youth ENDS use declines of more than 3.4 percent. The pattern of null findings persists when we examine ELLs that impose (1) higher penalties for retailer non-compliance, (2) higher renewable licensure fees, and (3) criminal as compared to civil penalties. However, we do uncover evidence that adoption of ELLs with higher penalties associated with a modest reduction in ENDS use among Black teens. We conclude that ELLs have only limited success in curbing access to ENDS.

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Note:
Funding Information: Dr. Sabia acknowledges research support for this work from the Center for Health Economics & Policy Studies (CHEPS) at San Diego State University (SDSU), which has received grants from the Charles Koch Foundation. This study was funded, in part, with a grant from the Foundation for a Smoke- Free World, Inc. ("FSFW'), a U.S. nonprofit 501(c)(3) private foundation. Dr. Sabia also acknowledges research support from a subcontract by Georgia State University in 2023 – via a grant received from the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number R01DA045016 – to support exploratory work on this project.

Declaration of Interests: None.