Livermore votes to ban the sale of flavored tobacco, e-cigarettes

LIVERMORE, Calif. (KGO) -- Livermore's city council voted unanimously Monday night to ban the sale of flavored tobacco products and e-cigarettes.

"We are thrilled to see Livermore take a stand against big tobacco. This is something that is an epidemic in this country," said Kristie Wang, the co-founder of the group Flavors Hook Kids, which lobbied for the ban.

RELATED: San Francisco is 1st major US city to ban sale of e-cigarettes

Wang said she and her co-founder heard stories from their teenage kids of walking through clouds of smoke at school and bathrooms being closed to prevent vaping. She believes this ban will have a major impact.

"In 36 jurisdictions in California, where they have used local policy to fight this, it has been extremely effective in bringing down youth rates of purchase," Wang said.

The city of Livermore says this will impact 71 tobacco retailers. One smoke shop owner told us he doesn't think this is fair. He just bought his store in October and says this ban will wipe put most of his business.

"In my store, 80 to 90 percent is the flavor and the electronics. But they are blaming the kids buying from the store but I don't think so because I always check IDs," said store owner Rohulh Ghafoori.

He is now wondering if he will go out of business.

But Kristie Wang is not worried.

"He'll find other things to sell. We know this from the other 36 jurisdictions that have enacted laws like this. These shops have found other things to sell, they have not gone out of business," Wang said.

This ban is set to go into effect in January.

See more stories and videos about e-cigarettes here.