State legislators plan to vote on a bill this week that would require “substance-free seating” for Colorado sporting events and concerts at venues with more than 7,000 seats, including stadiums, arenas and amphitheaters. Senate Bill 23-171, introduced Feb. 27 by Colorado Sen. Kevin Priola and Rep. Chris deGruy Kennedy, would require venues such as Ball Arena, Coors Field, Red Rocks Amphitheatre and Empower Field at Mile High to offer 4% of their audience capacity as “substance free seating,” where alcohol, tobacco and other substances would be banned. The bill addresses the need for families a ..read more

Wednesday marked the 120th and final day of Colorado’s 2022 legislative session, and the fourth straight year of total Democratic control of state government. It may also have marked an end of an era: polling suggests Republicans have a real chance to flip the state Senate in November, even as their odds are much longer for a flipped House or governor’s office. With that election looming over everything this year, it turned out to be a fascinating session in Colorado. Here are some of the major takeaways from the past 120 days: A boomerang on law enforcement In mid-2020, as protestors flooded ..read more

The nicotine landscape in Colorado is likely to change in the near future, but how much depends on what lawmakers do in the final days of this year’s legislative session. Late last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration proposed banning menthol in cigarettes and all non-tobacco flavors in cigars. A bill in the Colorado legislature would go further, prohibiting retailers from selling any tobacco product that’s flavored, and outlawing products made with lab-created nicotine. That wider definition would include e-cigarette liquid and most products, other than “premium cigars” and hookah tob ..read more

By MATTHEW PERRONE WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government on Thursday released its long-awaited plan to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars, citing the toll on Black smokers and young people. “The proposed rules would help prevent children from becoming the next generation of smokers and help adult smokers quit,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, in a statement. He added that the ban would also be an “important step to advance health equity” by reducing disparities in tobacco-related diseases. The Food and Drug Administration said eliminating menthol cigarettes cou ..read more

NEW YORK — Walmart will no longer sell cigarettes in some of its stores though tobacco sales can be a significant revenue generator. Wall Street Journal was the first to report the development Monday. It noted some stores in California, Florida, Arkansas and New Mexico were on the list, citing anonymous sources and store visits. Walmart is not the first national retail chain to cut off cigarette sales even on a trial basis, but it is the largest. Target ended cigarette sales in 1996 and the drugstore chain CVS Health did the same in 2014. CVS Health sales in areas outside the pharmacy fell for ..read more

Twenty-three businesses in Denver were handed $150 fines on Monday after being warned they did not have the proper licenses required for retailers selling tobacco in the city. The round of tickets stems from licensing requirement that the City Council passed in 2019 and officially took effect last year. They’re also a salvo from the city’s Department of Excise and Licenses announcing it is keeping a close eye on businesses that don’t live up to laws aimed at preventing youth tobacco use. “The licensing requirement for retail tobacco sales is a critical tool Denver has used to hold businesses a ..read more

On the heels of a defeat to ban flavored smoking and vaping products in Denver, state lawmakers are considering a flavor ban that could be enacted across Colorado. Several cities have passed similar bans, but an attempt to do so in Denver failed after Mayor Michael Hancock vetoed the City Council vote and members failed to overturn his veto. He and other councilors cited a need to have statewide regulations, saying a ban in Denver wouldn’t achieve the goal of keeping these products out of the hands of teens when surrounding municipalities didn’t have the same regulations. Rep. Kyle Mullica, a ..read more

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock used his veto power for only the second time in his tenure to block a bill that would have banned the sale of most flavored tobacco and vaping products in the city in 2023, drawing criticism from those who say the mayor chose to put profits over a public health crisis. Hancock sent a letter Friday morning to City Council that said a Denver ban would be ineffective because surrounding counties would still allow sales and it would harm small businesses. He declined to speculate on whether the Council will override his veto during their Monday night meeting. But the m ..read more

The Denver City Council approved a ban on most flavored tobacco and vaping products Monday night. Come July 2023, the only places adults will be able to legally buy any flavored smokables in the city will be at hookah lounges or shops selling pipe tobacco and handmade cigars. The flavor ban ordinance passed by a vote of 8-3 Monday. Council members Kevin Flynn, who sought to amend the measure to exempt menthol products, and Chris Herndon, who opposed it in its entirety, were absent. The vote brings to a close a months-long debate between council members who argued that limiting access to flavor ..read more

Metro Denver households pulled down an extra $29,308 in income compared to the typical U.S. household in 2019 and 2020 and spent about $13,572 more. And how they divided up their spending diverged significantly in four key areas, according to the latest Consumer Expenditures report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Households in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metropolitan area spend an average of $75,760 in 2019 and 2020 compared to $62,188 for U.S. households, noted BLS regional commissioner Michael Himiak in the report. That works out to Denver-area households spending $1.22 for every $1 ..read more