By:  Serach Nissim

New York officials have not been effective at enforcing the ban on flavored  vapes amid a robust black market, a new survey has revealed.

Some 53% percent of New York State residents said authorities are doing only a fair or poor job in enforcing the ban, per the poll conducted by Siena College Research Institute for the NYS Association of Convenience  Stores found.  In comparison, just 27% of respondents said officials are doing a good or excellent job with the enforcement, marking a nearly 2-1 gap, as reported by the NY Post. Polling showed a much smaller gap when residents were asked whether officials were protecting New Yorkers from the sale of illegal flavored vape products.  Some 42% responded that they were satisfied, while 43% said not satisfied.

In 2020, New York and the federal government approved laws banning the sale of flavored e-cigarettes or vapes, which have grown in  popularity particularly among young people and adolescents.  The survey, however, found that only 39% of residents actually knew flavored vapes were outlawed.  Some 53% responded they didn’t even know it was outlawed, revealed the poll obtained by The Post  on Sunday.  Asked whether they support the ban on the illegal flavored disposable vapes, an overwhelming majority of NY respondents said yes, with 60% saying they support the ban, while just 27% of poll respondents said they are opposed.  A majority of 61%  of NY residents responded that the state has done a shoddy job of educating New Yorkers about the prohibition.  Only 30% of respondents said the state is doing a good or excellent job at educating residents.

Some 68%of polled New Yorkers said they support stiffer fines for retailers who selling illegal products, while just 21 percent objected.

A whopping 74% said they support Attorney General Letitia James taking legal action against wholesalers and distributors that supply illegal flavored vaping products to retailers, with just 16% opposed.  Also, about two-thirds of residents said they support immediately shutting down retailers that illegally sell tobacco without a tobacco license, the poll revealed.  The Siena College survey, conducted from Jan. 8-11, questioned 812 NYS residents, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.

Per the Post, Mayor Eric Adams had filed a lawsuit last year against four distributors allegedly selling flavored vapes to retail vape and smoke shops. Only tobacco-flavored and unflavored vapes are currently legal in NYS.  Despite this, celebrity sponsors have been continuing  to push flavored vapes.  Last September, the Association of Convenience Stores filed cease  and desist letters to former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson, wrestler Hulk Hogan and rapper Snoop Dogg for allegedly peddling banned flavored nicotine vapes.

“New Yorkers want regulators to do their jobs and enforce the ban, because they believe the health and safety of their children and their communities are at risk,” said Kent Sopris, NYACS president.  “We urge the Legislature to strengthen enforcement laws in the budget so authorities can do just that. The NYS Department of Tax and Finance should be authorized to license e-vapor wholesalers  as well as investigate and seize illegal products. These are important steps to create the necessary infrastructure.”