ST. PAUL (KVRR) — Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announcing the state will receive $60.5 million over seven years in a settlement with e-cig manufacturer JUUL and tobacco marketer Altria. The settlement requires JUUL to pay more than one third of the settlement within 30 days, and 60 percent within the first year. The funds can then be dedicated by…
FARGO, N.D. (KVRR) — A former North Dakota senator and architect of one of the largest tobacco settlements in U.S. history is speaking out about Minnesota’s court case against vape manufacturer Juul. Minnesota is the first to take its case against the e-cigarette maker to court, after about 39 other states and territories settled. Former U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp, a…
HARWOOD, N.D. — The investigation continues into a house fire early Friday in Harwood. Crews responded to the 500 block of Wally Street. The home was fully engulfed when they arrived and it suffered heavy damage. Smoke could be seen from a couple miles away. Based off the investigation, Cass County authorities are confident the fire was not accidental. North…
MOORHEAD, Minn. – City officials in Moorhead have banned all flavored tobacco products from stores and raised the legal age to buy tobacco. The Moorhead City Council voted 7-1 to adopt an ordinance that raises the legal age from 18-21 and bars all flavored products from licensed stores, including menthol cigarettes, flavored chewing or smokeless tobacco, e-cigarettes and vape juices….
BISMARCK, N.D. (KVRR/KCND) – A North Dakota House committee is considering two bills that would raise tobacco taxes. One would raise the tax on a pack of cigarettes by $1.00, bringing the tax to $1.44. The other bill would raise taxes on other tobacco products. Tim Blasl, president of the North Dakota Hospital Association, told the House Finance and Taxation…
GRAND FORKS, N.D.–Grand Forks Public Health is among multiple organizations encouraging tobacco and e-cigarette users to set a quit date as a part of It’s Quitting Time. It’s Quitting Time is a partnership between the North Dakota Department of Health, Tobacco Free North Dakota and various North Dakota local public health units to raise awareness about the dangers of smoking….
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Gov. Tim Walz signed 11 bills into law Saturday, including measures to raise the age to purchase tobacco to 21 and make Minnesota the first state to prohibit the use of the toxic and long-lasting chemical trichloroethylene (TCE). Tobacco 21 law covers “tobacco, tobacco products, electronic delivery devices, and other nicotine products.” The process began May…
MINNESOTA – As teens find savvier ways to vape without getting caught, Clearway Minnesota is on a mission to cut at the root of the vaping epidemic. The organization lobbies at the State Capitol to pass stricter tobacco laws. “We have four main policy goals: One is tobacco 21, the second is restricting or prohibiting all flavored tobacco products, the…
FARGO, N.D. & MOORHEAD, Minn. — Walk into almost any convenience store or gas station, and you’ll see multiple shelves and display cases packed with cigarettes, vaping devices, and other forms of tobacco products. The National Association of Convenience Stores says 34 percent of all in-store purchases are attributed to tobacco. But beginning in the summer, these numbers may change….
ST. PAUL, Minn.–A Minnesota court says R.J. Reynolds Tobacco has wrongfully failed to pay the state millions of dollars it owes under Minnesota’s landmark 1998 settlement with the tobacco industry. The attorney general’s office says the court will enter a judgment in the coming months for the amount that Reynolds owes. Attorney General Keith Ellison said late Thursday his office…
