San Francisco votes to ban e-cigarettes

Oakland: San Francisco's Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to outlaw the sale of electronic-cigarettes across the city, which also includes online delivery of vaping products to an off-line recipient.

The legislation made San Francisco the first US city to approve an ordinance that bans the distribution and sale of e-cigarettes in brick-and-mortar stores and online shops.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed, who has earlier expressed support for the measure, has 10 days to sign off the bill. The law would be enforced seven months after it is signed into law.

City Attorney Dennis Herrera said in a statement, "San Francisco has never been afraid to lead. That will always be the case when the health of our children is on the line.

"This is a decisive step to help prevent another generation of San Francisco children from becoming addicted to nicotine."

Juul Labs, the biggest producer of e-cigarettes in the US, is based in San Francisco and has argued that vaping is a healthier alternative to smoking tobacco.

"This full prohibition will drive former adult smokers who successfully switched to vapor products back to deadly cigarettes, deny the opportunity to switch for current adult smokers, and create a thriving black market instead of addressing the actual causes of underage access and use," said Juul spokesman Ted Kwong.

The company said it supports stricter regulation and enforcement, instead of total prohibition, of e-cigarettes consumption, and proposed measures such as electronic age verification technology to minimise the impact of vaping.