Manitou Springs, CO Business Licensing & Operations: Tobacco Retail License (2026)
Key Facts
- License required
- Every tobacco and vape retailer needs a city license
- Vape coverage
- Tobacco product definition includes electronic smoking devices
- Minimum age
- Sales barred to anyone under twenty-one
- Self-service ban
- No open displays; clerk must hand over product
- Escalating penalty
- 7 days, 30 days, 1 year, then revocation
Summary
Selling cigarettes, cigars, chewing tobacco or e-cigarette and vaping products in Manitou Springs requires a tobacco product retail license under Chapter 5.10, and the code's definition of 'tobacco product' explicitly reaches electronic smoking devices, so a vape shop is licensed the same as a store selling cigarettes. Self-service displays are banned, sales to anyone under twenty-one are unlawful, and repeat violations escalate to a two-year license revocation.
T."Tobacco Product" means:1.Any product which contains, is made or derived from tobacco or used to deliver nicotine, synthetic nicotine or other substances intended for human consumption ... and2.An electronic smoking device; ... A.License Required. It shall be unlawful for any person to act as a tobacco product retailer in the city without first obtaining and then maintaining a valid tobacco product retail license pursuant to this chapter for each retail location where the activity is to occur. ... E.Minimum Legal Sales Age. Tobacco products shall not be sold to any person under twenty-one years of age. ... H.Self-Service Displays Prohibited. Tobacco product retailing by means of a self-service display is prohibited. ... D.Timeframe for Suspension and Revocation Following Violation.1.Upon a finding of a first violation of this chapter within a three-year period at a licensed location the license shall be suspended for seven days; ... 4.Upon a finding of four violations within a three-year period of this chapter at a licensed location, the license shall be revoked, and the licensee shall be deemed ineligible to apply for a license for two years.
Full Breakdown
040(A). 020(T) explicitly folds in electronic smoking devices, meaning a vape or e-cigarette retailer needs the same license as a shop selling cigarettes, cigars or chewing tobacco, along with any component like a cartridge, coil or e-liquid sold with it. 040 bars self-service displays entirely, meaning tobacco and vape products cannot sit accessible to customers without a clerk's direct hand-to-hand transfer, and it sets the minimum legal sales age at twenty-one, with required signage at every entrance and positive identification checks for any buyer who looks younger than thirty.
070 lets the administrator deny a license for a material falsehood, a prior revocation within the last two years, unpaid city taxes, or a finding that granting it would endanger public health or safety. 140 lays out an escalating penalty schedule: a first violation within three years draws a seven-day suspension, a second draws thirty days, a third draws a full year, and a fourth violation revokes the license outright and bars the retailer from reapplying for two years.
Violations & Fines
A first violation of Chapter 5.10 within a three-year window suspends the tobacco or vape retail license for seven days, a second draws thirty days, and a third draws one full year; a fourth violation revokes the license entirely and makes the retailer ineligible to reapply for two years. Selling without a license at all can also be enjoined by the city as a public nuisance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do vape shops need a special license in Manitou Springs?
Can tobacco or vape products be displayed on an open shelf?
What happens the first time a Manitou Springs retailer sells tobacco to a minor?
Who checks compliance at tobacco and vape retailers in Manitou Springs?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Manitou Springs
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