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Delaware Set to Outlaw Sale of E-Cigarettes to Minors

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DOVER, Del. (AP) - The state Senate is set to vote on final legislative approval of a bill outlawing the sale of electronic cigarettes in Delaware to minors.

The bill to be voted on Tuesday is intended to treat tobacco substitutes such as electronic cigarettes the same as tobacco products under Delaware law.

More than 25 other states already prohibit the sale of e-cigarettes to minors.    

The penalty for selling to minors would be a $250 fine for the first offense, increasing to $1,000 for third and subsequent offenses.

Delaware lawmakers also are working on separate legislation that adds electronic cigarettes to the state's indoor smoking ban.

Electronic cigarettes do not contain tobacco but heat a nicotine solution to produce an odorless vapor without the smoke and tar of tobacco.

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.