Minneapolis Restricts the Sale of Menthol Cigarettes

City council votes to restrict the sale of menthol cigarettes to tobacco shops and liquor stores.

August 07, 2017

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Last Friday, the Minneapolis City Council voted to restrict the sale of menthol cigarettes in the city to tobacco shops and off-sale liquor stores, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The new regulations on menthol, mint and wintergreen tobacco products will take effect in August 2018. The city says the restrictions will cut the products’ availability from 318 outlets to 23 tobacco shops and 24 liquor stores.

The restriction adds to an already existing citywide limit on flavored tobacco sales. The news source writes that convenience store owners have raised concerns about the restriction, which they say will hurt their businesses.

After the vote, convenience store owners in red T-shirts reading "Enough is Enough" gathered outside the council chambers, according to the news source. The retailers say the new menthol ban will cut into profits at a time when their operations are already challenged by the flavored tobacco restriction, citywide paid sick leave requirements and the upcoming $15 minimum wage hike.

Richard Bohnen, who owns two gas stations in south Minneapolis, says he can continue to operate his stores but isn’t sure how much he wants to.

"It's an absolute joke being in Minneapolis right now," he told the news source. "Between the $15 an hour, the paid sick leave … I don't want to be there."

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