TOPEKA —The legal age for buying cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and other tobacco products in Kansas is now 21.
On Tuesday, Governor Laura Kelly reported she signed House Bill 2269 that Amends the Kansas Cigarette and Tobacco Products Act to raise the minimum age to 21 years old for the sale, purchase, or possession of cigarettes and other tobacco products.
The bill passed the Kansas House on a 68-53 vote and the Senate 28-11.
Officials with the state Department of Revenue and the Department for Aging and Disability Services supported the measure. Public health officials believe raising the age to purchase tobacco products will reduce their use and the resulting health care costs.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death, disease and disability in the U.S. and nine out of 10 adults who smoke started by age 18.
Forty-one other states have increased their legal age to 21, including the tobacco-producing states of Kentucky and Virginia. The federal government raised its age to 21 in 2019 and told states they'd have to enforce the higher age to receive federal funds for substance abuse programs.
Supporters of the legislation included the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, the Kansas Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Kansas Hospital Association, the Kansas National Education Association and the University of Kansas Cancer Center.
-The Associated Press contributed to this report