State Attorney General Busts Online Companies Selling E-Cigs to Teens

Washington State Attorney General has announced a sweep of companies that sell vaping products online…and that seven, including one based in Spokane, sold those products to minors…amassing $132,000 in fines.

AG Bob Ferguson notes the sting caught those businesses violating numerous state laws.

"It's important to emphasize that none of these seven companies did any of those things. It wasn't like they were just missing one aspect of the law, they missed it completely in multiple ways."

In addition, four of those seven companies did not even have a license to ship these products to consumers.

Annie Teegan is with the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and joined Ferguson for the press conference.

"In the past it's been fairly easy for kids to buy e-cigarettes online. Studies have found that youth successfully purchased e-cigarettes over the internet. Many online retailers don't have added age verification. Some retailers simply require purchasers to check a box verifying that they are over the age of 21."

In fact, in 2018, 21-percent of high school sophomores say they used e-cigarettes…even though it's against the law for people under the age of 21.