2020 Legislative Session Summary

An estimated 11,900 Utahns will be diagnosed with cancer in 2020, with an estimated 3,350 dying from the disease.  Reducing these numbers relies as much on public policy as it does on proven medical research.  Cancer is one of the most preventable and increasingly curable life-threatening diseases – but only if we take the steps necessary to prevent it outright, detect it early, and improve access to care. To this end, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) in Utah worked on the following legislative priorities in support of our mission to end cancer as a major health problem. 

Skin Cancer Prevention

HB 34 Tanning for Minors: The greatest known risk factor for skin cancer is the use of indoor tanning devices. In the US, more than 6,000 cases of melanoma can be attributed to indoor tanning annually.  Melanoma is of particular concern in Utah, as the state has the highest incidence of melanoma in the country. Unfortunately, the desire for a tanned appearance still causes many people, especially young adults and teenagers, to ignore the serious health risks and warnings and use indoor tanning devices. 

Reducing the Toll of Tobacco

The Utah legislature debated numerous bills related to electronic cigarettes during the session.  ACS CAN in Utah weighed in on three of them, opposing all three. 

HB 118 Retail Tobacco Specialty Amendments: ACS CAN supports policies that end the sale of all flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes, regardless of where products are sold.  ACS CAN opposed HB 118 because it would have restricted the sale of flavored e-cigarettes, with the exception of mint and menthol, to tobacco specialty shops rather than removing ALL flavored tobacco products from the market. The bill did not pass.

HB 23 Tobacco and Electronic Cigarette Amendments: Among other things, this legislation aims to restrict the ability of local governments to pass their own tobacco control policies and to restrict the sale of flavored e-cigarettes, excluding mint and menthol, to tobacco specialty shops.  ACS CAN in Utah opposes both of those provisions and therefore opposed the bill.  

ACS CAN advocates for public policies that will help prevent cancer at all levels of government. Thus, ACS CAN opposed the language in this bill that would restrict the authority of local communities to pass important laws at the local level that are stronger than state law. Local control over matters designed to protect the public’s health has numerous benefits that are lost when the state takes away the authority for local communities to enact their own laws that are stronger than the state law.  

ACS CAN opposed the proposed flavor restrictions in the bill for the same reasons as we opposed HB 118.

Unfortunately, this legislation did pass.  ACS CAN, along with other advocacy organizations, asked Governor Herbert to veto the bill. He did not and the bill has been signed into law.

SB 37 Electronic Cigarette and Other Nicotine Product Amendments: ACS CAN in Utah is concerned about all forms of tobacco use in the state and advocated that e-cigarettes be defined, treated, regulated and taxed in the same manner as all other tobacco products. We opposed this bill for falling short of making that happen. 

This bill imposes a 56% of wholesale tax on e-cigarettes; unfortunately, it also imposes a significantly lower tax on tobacco products that receive a “modified risk tobacco product” marking order from the FDA, a weight-based tax on alternative nicotine products, and fails to tax the e-cigarette device itself.  For those reasons, ACS CAN in Utah opposed this bill.  It did pass and has been signed into law.