MONTPELIER, Vt. – This week, Vermont is joining New York by requiring all cigarettes sold within its borders to meet fire safety standards, reports the Associated Press.

“It's one important way we can save lives in Vermont,” Paul Burns, executive director of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group, told the AP, adding, “We would expect that these cigarettes would reduce the incidence of tobacco-related fires in the state.” 

Prior to making the switch to fire-safe cigarettes, Vermont retailers will be allowed to sell their remaining inventory of regular cigarettes.

“I don't really think it's going to end up to be a huge issue on the retail end,” Jim Harrison, president of the Vermont Grocers Association told the news source.

Meadow Mart owner Terry Shannon commented that he has “no problem” with selling fire-safe cigarettes, but noted that he has already experienced customer complaints about the ones he is already selling. “They have to keep relighting them,” he told the AP.

When New York’s fire-safe cigarette law took effect, some retailers were concerned that the “taste” and “characteristics” of the cigarettes would not appeal to their customers and would lead to increased Internet sales or entice customers to purchase regular cigarettes in other states.

“There were some customers who didn't like the new properties of the fire-safe cigarettes, but as a whole the transition in New York was much smoother than we ever anticipated,” Jim Calvin, president of the New York Association of Convenience Stores, told the news source.

“Yes, there was some grumbling, but the big picture is there was a high level of consumer acceptance,” Calvin added. 

Other states have considered similar fire-safe laws. The AP writes that a fire-safe law will take effect in California in January, and a similar measure has been sent to Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) for his signature.