California banned the sale of flavored vapes, along with menthol cigarettes and other flavored tobacco products, primarily to reduce youth nicotine addiction. The law, known as SB 793, passed the state legislature in 2020 and was upheld by 63.4% of California voters in November 2022 through Proposition 31.
What the Law Actually Covers
California didn’t ban all vapes. It banned flavored ones. SB 793 prohibits retailers from selling any tobacco product with a “characterizing flavor,” defined as a distinguishable taste or aroma other than tobacco itself. That includes fruit, candy, dessert, chocolate, vanilla, honey, mint, and menthol flavors. Unflavored tobacco products and tobacco-flavored vapes remain legal to sell.
The list of prohibited products is broader than most people realize. It covers flavored e-cigarettes, vape pods, and e-juice, but also menthol cigarettes, flavored little cigars and cigarillos, flavored smokeless tobacco, blunt wraps, flavored rolling papers, and even tobacco product flavor enhancers (additives you’d apply to make a product taste like something other than tobacco). The law was later updated to explicitly include products that produce a cooling sensation, synthetic nicotine products, and nicotine analogs, closing loopholes manufacturers tried to exploit.
Why Flavors Specifically
The core argument behind the ban is straightforward: flavors make nicotine products easier to start using, especially for teenagers. Most adults who use tobacco started before age 18, and young tobacco users overwhelmingly choose flavored products. Flavoring agents like menthol and fruit extracts mask the harshness of nicotine, making the first few uses more tolerable. That matters because nicotine is highly addictive, and reducing the barrier to that first experience is, in the state’s view, reducing the barrier to long-term addiction.
Young people don’t typically pick up a pack of unflavored cigarettes. They reach for mango-flavored vape pods or menthol products. By removing those options from store shelves, the law aims to make the on-ramp to nicotine use steeper and less appealing.
How the Law Survived a Tobacco Industry Challenge
SB 793 was signed into law in August 2020, but it didn’t take effect on schedule. The tobacco industry funded a referendum campaign to put the law on hold and let voters decide. That effort succeeded in delaying enforcement until the November 2022 election, when the question appeared on the ballot as Proposition 31.
The gamble didn’t pay off for the industry. Over 6.8 million Californians voted yes, upholding the ban with 63.4% of the vote. The law took effect immediately after the election was certified. Public polling during the lead-up showed support ranging from 47% to 90% depending on the community, but the statewide result was decisive.
What Happens to Retailers Who Violate the Ban
When the law first took effect, retailers caught selling flavored tobacco products faced a $250 fine per violation. Starting January 1, 2024, California tightened enforcement by aligning penalties with the existing STAKE Act, the state’s framework for punishing illegal tobacco sales to minors. The law applies not just to store owners but to any employee or agent who makes the sale.
Early compliance checks in California communities that had already passed local flavor bans before the state law found illegal sales rates as high as 57% in some areas, though other areas had 0% violation rates. Enforcement varies significantly by location.
What You Can and Can’t Still Buy
If you’re an adult vape user in California, you can still legally purchase tobacco-flavored or unflavored vape products from licensed retailers. What you won’t find on store shelves is anything with a fruit, mint, menthol, dessert, or candy flavor profile. That applies to disposable vapes, refillable pods, bottled e-juice, and cartridges alike.
The ban is a retail restriction, not a possession law. Owning or using a flavored vape product isn’t illegal. The penalties fall on retailers, not consumers. However, buying flavored products online or from out-of-state sellers to ship into California runs into separate shipping restrictions that have tightened in recent years under both state and federal law.
California’s Place in a Broader Trend
California is the most populous state to enact a flavored tobacco ban, but it wasn’t the first. Massachusetts banned flavored tobacco sales in 2020. Dozens of California cities and counties, including San Francisco, had already passed local flavor bans before SB 793 made the policy statewide. The CDC documented at least 36 California communities that passed local prohibitions between 2017 and 2021, creating a patchwork of local rules that the state law ultimately standardized.
The federal government has considered but not enacted a nationwide menthol cigarette ban. California’s law goes further than any proposed federal action by covering the full range of flavored tobacco and nicotine products, including vapes, in a single prohibition.