Committee backs ban on disposable e-cigarettes, citing youth vaping and lithium-battery fire risk

The House Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce voted March 3 to advance HB 2121 HD1, which would prohibit the sale or distribution of disposable electronic smoking devices in Hawaii beginning Jan. 1, 2027.

The Department of Health (DOH) described the products as hazardous waste when discarded because each device contains a lithium-ion battery and multiple non-biodegradable components. "The product I found ... 50,000 puffs ... that's equivalent to about five packs of cigarettes," said Lola Arnott of DOH's Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Division, citing the devices' high nicotine content and fire risk. DOH offered an amendment with enforcement language and a per-seller, per-day penalty.

Youth and public-health advocates emphasized both health and environmental harms. "Hawaii is facing a serious youth vaping epidemic and disposable e-cigarettes are especially popular because they're cheap, easy to use, and highly addictive," said Jeremiah of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii Youth Council. Advocates described beach cleanups and waste-stream incidents, and cited facility operators' reports of lithium-related fires that forced equipment shutdowns.

The committee adopted DOH's penalty amendment (per-seller per-day) to ease enforcement and passed the bill with amendments. Members discussed whether penalties should be per-device rather than per-day; the chair said per-day penalties better match enforcement practice and avoided counting large device quantities during inspections.

The bill now proceeds with the adopted enforcement language; supporters said it addresses youth access and the growing environmental and safety problems linked to disposable vaping devices.