Top Takeaways:

• Tennessee bill S.B. 2086 would ban direct-to-consumer shipping of cigars and other tobacco products.
• Retailers would need a new $250 tobacco retail license, overseen by the Tennessee Alcohol Commission.
• All tobacco sales would be required to occur in person at licensed stores, potentially including a ban on curbside pickup.

A bill introduced in the Tennessee legislature would prohibit retailers from shipping vapes, nicotine pouches, cigars, and other tobacco products directly to consumers and would impose new licensing and compliance requirements on tobacco and vape retailers operating in the state.

The proposal, S.B. 2086, known as the Tobacco Product Retail Licensing Act, would place tobacco and vaping products under the authority of the Tennessee Alcohol Commission and require retailers selling those products to obtain a new tobacco product retail license. The license would carry a $250 application fee and a $250 annual renewal fee.

Under the bill, the Alcohol Commission would gain authority to conduct underage compliance checks, seize contraband products, and maintain a statewide database of licensed tobacco retailers. Retailers found in violation of the law could face civil penalties starting at $500, with fines increasing to $20,000 and potential license suspension for repeat offenses.

For consumers, the most significant change would be a ban on remote sales of tobacco and vaping products, including mail-order and delivery sales. The bill requires that all tobacco transactions occur in person, over the counter, at a licensed retail location, making it unlawful for retailers to sell or deliver tobacco products through any other method.

As written, the provision would also appear to prohibit curbside pickup transactions in which purchases are made remotely and collected in person.

The legislation was introduced by Sen. Shane Reeves, R-Murfreesboro, along with four other Republican co-sponsors. Reeves, a pharmacist, has previously supported stricter state-level regulation of tobacco products, according to media reports.