Smokin’ in the boys room — or any public place — could get more difficult for Colorado kids under a two-pronged proposal that sailed through a Senate committee Monday afternoon.
Police officers could confiscate the smokes of anyone younger than 18, and anyone who looks younger than 30 would have to show identification to buy tobacco under a bill aimed at extinguishing under-age smoking.
Colorado is one of 15 states that ban the under-18 set from buying cigarettes and tobacco products but doesn’t say the youngsters can’t use them, said Sen. Ron Tupa, D-Boulder.
“The state shouldn’t be condoning this outright dangerous behavior,” Tupa said after an hour of testimony from anti-smoking advocates and high school students.
The students testified that run-ins with police officers would attach an additional stigma to cigarettes, even though getting caught wouldn’t leave black marks on young smokers’ records.
The carding provision included in Tupa’s bill would be the first time Colorado has required proof of age to purchase tobacco, the senator said.
The bill passed unanimously after the committee stripped language that also would have banned give-away promotions of tobacco products.
Jessica Fender: 303-954-1244 or jfender@denverpost.com
