County counsel says Department of Health would enforce new vaping presumption; legislators push licensing option

Committee members asked whether the proposed enforcement mechanism would give inspectors broader access to shop interiors and how enforcement decisions would be reviewed. Justin Nate of the law department said enforcement would be handled by the Department of Health and that the board of health makes the ultimate decisions, with Article 78 review available for department actions. "This is the Department of Health enforces," Nate said in response to a question about enforcement authority.

Several legislators stressed that a licensing or permitting regime for vape shops would make compliance and enforcement easier. Legislator Cheryl Williams Johnson and others noted they have submitted a separate draft to create such a permitting process to help keep these products out of children’s reach; committee members said further research will be required to design licensing that fits the county’s enforcement framework. The transcript records that creating licensing would be a separate effort requiring additional research and a future committee discussion.