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Baltimore council hearing spotlights spread of smoke shops, proposed measure to close illegal sellers
Summary
City officials, public‑health experts and residents told a City Council committee that dense clusters of smoke shops are selling unregulated vape and cannabis products to youth and undermining neighborhoods; the sponsor proposed legislation to give local authorities new closure powers while agencies said enforcement and staffing are limited.
Baltimore City Council members, public‑health officials and community residents pressed city and law‑enforcement agencies on Tuesday about a rapid growth in smoke shops and the sale of unregulated vape and cannabis products that officials said are disproportionately concentrated in lower‑income neighborhoods and accessible to young people.
Council President Cohen and bill sponsor Councilman John Glover framed the hearing around data and neighborhood testimony, saying Baltimore has roughly 1,200 licensed tobacco retailers and that a 2020 study showed tobacco retailers are concentrated at far higher rates in the city’s lowest‑income neighborhoods. “Smoke shops are crowding out other businesses and they are frequently preying on our kids,” Cohen said, listing cases in which city staff reported finding unauthorized products for sale and announcing legislation to allow the city to shut businesses that sell cannabis illegally.
Why it matters: witnesses from public‑health groups, schools and research centers…
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