AUSTIN, Texas — Texas' efforts to reduce teen vaping rates will have a new law helping them to start the new year.
It's called the Protecting Children from Electronic Cigarette Advertising Act, or Texas House Bill 4758, which makes it illegal to market, advertise, or sell e-cigarette products to minors.
Some instances that would be deemed as a criminal offense are:
- Shows a cartoon-like fictional character that mimics a character primarily aimed at entertaining minors
- Imitates or mimics trademarks or trade dress of products that are or have been primarily marketed to minors
- Includes a symbol that is primarily used to market products to minors
- Includes an image of a celebrity
- Includes an image that resembles a food product, including candy or juice.
Marketing Professor at the School of Business at UT Austin Raji Srinivasan says marketing includes promotions, packaging, and where it's sold. Even where it's kept in the stores, like if it's next to snacks or soda or other things also aimed at the youth.
“A lot of these companies that actually marketing nationally, they're just not marketing to Texas alone, although it does look like from the numbers that Texas is a very big market for e-cigs, especially for the youth,” said Srinivasan.
“So, I'm not going to see these marketers walk away necessarily because of the law. I think they'd be more careful, you know, in terms of what they'll end up doing.”
She says companies will cut back because it's the law, but it is such a lucrative business there is likely to be some pushback and they’ll look for loopholes.
“How effective it would be, would depend in part on, you know, some prosecution. Like if somebody violates, you know, in the next 6 to 8 months after the law is in force, you know, what are the penalties? How seriously are they going to do this? You know, take action against it, as I suspected.”
In November, the government reported that fewer high school students were vaping in 2023.
According to the Associated Press, a survey showed 10% of high school students admitted to using an e-cigarette in the last month, which was down from 14% in 2022.
The report also stated that using any tobacco product — including cigarettes and cigars — also fell among high schoolers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.