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Decatur council moves to adopt local tax, license for consumable vapor products before Oct. 1 deadline
Summary
Council members introduced an ordinance to tax and license consumable vapor products at a local level after a state law set licensing and taxation; city staff said action is required by Oct. 1 if Decatur wants to collect the tax locally.
Decatur council members introduced an ordinance to license and tax consumable vapor products and directed staff to place the ordinance on the council agenda before the Oct. 1 deadline. Herman, a staff member, told the council that “we have to have an ordinance in place by October 1. The state legislature, adopted this past session, licensing and taxation of consumable vapor products. And if the city wants to collect it themselves, we have to pass an order before October 1.”
The proposed local tax would be 10¢ per milliliter and apply citywide, according to council discussion. A council member (unnamed) said, “This tax is 10¢ per milliliter within the citywide?” and Herman clarified it is collected from wholesalers and retailers, with the tax designed to be paid only once so retailers do not pay again when their wholesaler already paid.
Council discussion included rough revenue estimates and implementation choices. One council member estimated “maybe annually… 60,000,” while another suggested a range near $50,000 based on local vaping statistics and population; both speakers cautioned those were rough figures. Herman added that a primary reason to collect locally rather than rely on the state is to avoid the city receiving what staff described as an unsatisfactory allocation under SSUT.
The ordinance was scheduled to appear on the council agenda for the Sept. 15 meeting to meet the Oct. 1 requirement. The discussion was introductory; the council did not adopt the ordinance at the meeting.
Why it matters: The city must act by Oct. 1 to collect the new state-authorized tax locally. If the city does not pass its own ordinance by that date, local collection would not occur and revenue flows would follow the state process discussed by staff.
Additional context: Council members discussed that the tax mechanism resembles other special taxes such as tobacco or alcohol excise levies, but keyed to milliliters of consumable vapor product. The transcript did not specify enforcement mechanisms, exact administrative costs, or legal code citations beyond a reference to recently adopted state legislation.
