A Santa Clarita vape shop sold e-cigarette products to at least one minor, a KHTS investigation uncovered, as the electronic cigarette industry takes fire for marketing practices targeting children.

KHTS went undercover to “Drip N’ Vape” in Saugus, a vaping product store with a reputation of selling to underage customers in the Santa Clarita Valley.

“The particular reason I went there was because of its reputation of not ID’ing customers,” said a 20-year-old customer, who asked to remain anonymous for this story. “In fact, my younger brother and his friends recommended to me, and they are minors.”

The Law

The sale of tobacco products and electronic cigarettes to persons under the age of 21 is prohibited, under the California Penal Code.

The law was changed in 2016, when the California legislature approved a bill to raise the smoking age from 18 to 21.

“E-cigarettes may present an important opportunity for adult smokers to transition off combustible tobacco products and onto nicotine delivery products that may not have the same level of risks associated with them,” said Scott Gottlieb, commissioner for the FDA. “But these public health opportunities are put at risk if all we do is hook another generation of kids on nicotine and tobacco products through alternatives like e-cigarettes. Ultimately we need to make every effort to prevent youth tobacco use.”

The California Revenue. & Tax Code defines tobacco products as “a product containing, made, or derived from tobacco or nicotine that is intended for human consumption. Tobacco products also include electronic cigarettes.”

Under the same code, electronic cigarettes are defined as “any device or delivery system sold in combination with nicotine which can be used to deliver to a person nicotine in aerosolized or vaporized form, including, but not limited to, an e-cigarette, e-cigar, e-pipe, vape pen, or e-hookah.”

Video Evidence

A KHTS reporter, who is under the age of 21, went to the Drip N’ Vape location on June 19 and purchased a canister of e-liquid, commonly referred to as “vape juice.” At no point during the transaction did the employee ask to see an ID, leading to the illegal sale of a vape product.

The next day, KHTS contacted the owner, Rick Dugum, for comment. After hearing about the KHTS operation, he said he decided to terminate the employee shown in the video.

“I talked to the employee and he did not check for ID,” Dugum said. “I have decided to let him go because I really don’t want that to happen again.”

Dugum assured KHTS that Drip N’ Vape does not approve of selling to minors, and that every step was being taken to rectify the situation.

The Penalties

The FDA is responsible for regulating and enforcing laws regarding the sale of tobacco products.

The agency only enforces the federal minimum age for sales of tobacco products, which is 18. The California government is responsible for enforcing the state age to buy, 21.

“The FDA closely monitors retailer, manufacturer, importer and distributor compliance with federal tobacco laws and regulations, and takes corrective action when violations occur,” said Michael Felberbaum, press officer for the FDA.

For a business’ first violation, no fine is charged, but a warning letter from the FDA is sent. However, if the business continues to be found in violation, the FDA will send Civil Money Penalties, depending on the number of violations (see chart below).

In addition to the Civil Money Penalties, the FDA can also prohibit a business from selling tobacco products if they are continually found to be in violation.

“Under the law, the FDA may pursue a No-Tobacco-Sale Order (NTSO) against retailers that have a total of five or more repeated violations of certain restrictions within 36 months,” reads a statement on the FDA website. “Retailers are prohibited from selling regulated tobacco products at the specified location during the period of the NTSO.”

Ultimately, all of the laws and regulations are in place to keep minors safe from the potential dangers of nicotine addiction, according to Gottlieb.

“We must not lose sight of the fact that for the past several years, e-cigarettes have been the most commonly used tobacco product among both middle and high school students and a total of 2.1 million youth used e-cigarettes in 2017,” Gottlieb said. “These figures are particularly concerning because youth exposure to nicotine — whether it comes from a cigarette or an e-cigarette — affects the developing brain and may rewire it to be more susceptible to nicotine addiction in the future.”

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