CC WORKSESSION PACKET 05112021 - Laserfiche WebLink

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MEMORANDUM To: St. Anthony Village City Council From: Charlie Yunker, City Manager Date: May 11, 2021 City Council Work Session Request: Discussion Regarding Prohibition of the Sale of Flavored Tobacco BACKGROUND At its work Session on March 9, 2021 the Council asked staff to bring information forward to explore an ordinance prohibiting the sale of flavored tobacco. At the subsequent Work Session on April 13, 2021, Katie Engman from the Association of Nonsmokers-Minnesota (ANSR) presented on the topic and provided information to review. UPDATE From that discussion, staff was asked to contact neighboring communities to learn if they had or are having conversations on the topic. Staff learned that one community is currently working on an ordinance amendment to revise tobacco sampling regulations and they may discuss flavored tobacco, though that has not been the focus on the discussion. Another neighboring community has not had discussion on it recently and does not anticipate to in the near future. Staff also reached out to the Intergovernmental Relations contacts at the League of Minnesota Cities, and they reported that House and Senate legislation have continued in committees, but believe it is unlikely that anything will pass this year, but it could be taken up next year. Also, the FDA announced it is working toward issuing proposed product standards within the next year to ban menthol as a characterizing flavor in cigarettes and ban all characterizing flavors (including menthol) in cigars. The rule-making process is expected to take at least a year. DISCUSSION ITEMS FOR COUNCIL FEEDBACK Below are the specific items for discussion and feedback for the City Council: • Does the Council wish to move forward with exploring an ordinance? • Would the Council like to monitor State and Federal level activity and revisit in the future?