A city of Kyle ordinance banning the sale of electronic cigarettes and similar products to minors could make its way to the state Legislature when the 84th session begins in January.

State Rep. Jason Isaac, R-Dripping Springs, said he plans on filing a bill proposing a ban on the sale of the increasingly popular devices to minors.

Isaac told Community Impact Newspaper on June 20 that he received draft language on the ban from the Kyle Area Youth Advisory Council, or KAYAC, the student-run organization that provides policy advice to Kyle City Council and led recent efforts to pass an ordinance in the city banning the sale of e-cigarettes to minors.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the percentage of U.S. middle and high school students who reported having used an e-cigarette at least once jumped from 4.7 percent in 2011 to 10 percent in 2012. KAYAC members estimated use among students in their high schools could be even more rampant.

The cities of Borger, Rockwall and Frisco all took action this year to ban minors from being sold or using e-cigarettes within each city's limits.

The Food and Drug Administration recently gained regulatory power of the tobacco industry and has said it will regulate e-cigarettes in a similar manner as tobacco products. With studies on the effects of vaping still pending completion, however, the FDA has yet to pass down rules.

The regulatory void extends to the state level as well, with no e-cigarette-related policies on the books. But if the bill Isaac intends to file clears both legislative houses and is signed into law by the governor, statewide measures on e-cigarettes could come as early as 2015.

In the meantime, municipalities throughout the state have deliberated on how to get a handle on the suddenly prolific e-cigarette industry. In many cases, protecting the health of the public—especially the teenagers with whom flamboyant and candy-like nicotine juice flavors have become popular—outweighs a prominent desire for small government.

"Regulation is a tool," Kyle Councilman David Wilson said. "It is not the first place I look when I run into [a policy issue]. But when it comes to selling things that could potentially be harmful to minors, I draw the line there. I think that we need to take care of our kids."

'Complete common sense'

Isaac said he is especially concerned about the use of the devices in schools and not only that they often contain nicotine but also potentially controlled substances, such as the active ingredient in marijuana, THC.

"This is just a device that will allow [minors] to use drugs that are either regulated or currently illegal," Isaac said. "To me [barring children from buying or possessing e-cigarettes] makes complete common sense."

Isaac, whose district covers Blanco and Hays counties, said he was shocked to learn that the sale of e-cigarettes to children age 17 and younger was not already illegal. He said he believes the general population is also not aware minors can be sold e-cigarettes.

KAYAC began researching the issue last year after it was brought up at one of the group's regular meetings, said Nik Fisher, KAYAC's liaison to City Council.

"It turns out there is no legislation on it," Fisher said. "Any 12-year-old can walk into a gas station and buy these things that were originally intended to help smokers stop smoking. We decided to take it upon ourselves to attempt to stop people that wouldn't be able to smoke anyways from smoking these things that are filled with the same stuff that's in antifreeze and nicotine."

In 2009 the FDA studied samples of e-cigarette liquid, often called "e-juice," from two leading brands and turned up "detectable levels" of diethylene glycol, which is used in toxic antifreeze. In some samples, carcinogens, such as nitrosamines, were discovered.

But the Smoke Free Alternatives Trade Association, which represents the e-cigarette industry, claims the diethylene glycol levels found in the samples were not toxic, and the chemical is not a standard ingredient in e-juice. The association adds further that propylene glycol, which is an ingredient in nontoxic antifreeze and considered safe for small children and pets, is a base ingredient for e-cigarette liquid.

School policy

Hays CISD, the district in which members of KAYAC attend school, is proposing an amendment to its student code of conduct in response to the e-cigarette trend. The 2014–15 rulebook would treat e-cigarettes the same way it does tobacco products.

Hays CISD Spokesman Tim Savoy said the district "only had a couple of incidents [with e-cigarettes on campus] at the high school level" in 2013-14. The punishment handed down for those cases mirrored the penalty for smoking a cigarette, which entails campus-based detention, Savoy said. Clarifying the language in the student code of conduct will ensure there is no confusion among staff about whether students should be in possession of such products at school.

E-cigarettes will also be part of the district's education about the dangers of tobacco products and may be included in health classes, Savoy said.

Curry Parker, who owns Kyle smoke shop Pipe Lion, said the ordinance will not affect his business because minors are denied entry into his store, as per smoke shop regulations.

"The way it has always been here is that you can't come in here until you're 18," Parker said. "It doesn't really impact us at all."

While Parker said he is generally wary of too much government involvement in the regulation of the e-cigarette industry, he said more could be done to keep children away from the products at places like convenience stores.

Next step

Isaac said after a phone call from former Kyle Mayor Lucy Johnson, he met with the student group and discussed the possibility of filing legislation similar to the Kyle ordinance, which passed unanimously June 3.

The next step would take place in the fall and entails handing off the draft language to the Texas Legislative Council, which provides assistance in the drafting of bills.

Cracking down on public smoking has been a priority for Isaac since stepping into office, he said.

As a former server during a time when smoking sections were common at most restaurants, Isaac said he was subjected to poor health conditions and wanted to do something to prevent others from being harmed by second-hand smoke.

He unsuccessfully sponsored legislation in both the 2009 and 2011 legislative sessions to ban smoking in public places statewide.

But some of the most vocal opponents of those measures ardently support Isaac's aim to file a bill prohibiting the sale of e-cigarettes to minors, he said.

With his constituents widely calling for the bill, Isaac said he would not be surprised if other lawmakers are hearing the same concerns and have plans to file similar legislation—in which case he said he would be willing to give a more senior lawmaker the honors so long as it gives the bill legs.

"My thought process is, 'Let's just get it done,'" he said. "I don't care whose name is on the top of the paper when it's passed."