Yesterday, the Belmont Board of Health voted to raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco products and nicotine delivery devices within the city to 21 years of age. The vote followed a public hearing on the matter and brings a resolution to something that the board has been considering since at least the start of August. According to a post on the city’s website, the board will also impose guidelines on the sale of flavored cigar wrappers and associated products favored by many youths to make smoking more enjoyable. The board has also been reported to be considering creating a new licensing and approval process for tobacco retailers, banning tobacco sales within 500 feet of schools, banning flavored tobacco products and blunt wraps, and placing new requirements on the minimum price and packaging size of small cigars commonly found at convenience stores, though nothing has been reported on those issues. The new regulation goes into effect on January 1, 2015. Belmont is a suburb of Boston and home to approximately 25,000 residents.
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