Laguna Niguel, CA Tobacco & Vaping: Flavored Tobacco Bans (2026)

Municipal Code § 5-3-198(a) makes it a violation for an electronic cigarette retailer or its agents or employees to sell or offer for sale any flavored electronic cigarette product, and § 5-3-198(b) separately bars possessing such a product with intent to sell, with a rebuttable presumption of intent to sell attaching once a retailer holds four or more flavored electronic cigarette products. Section 5-3-197 defines a 'characterizing flavor' broadly to include menthol, mint, wintergreen, fruit, chocolate, vanilla, honey, candy, cocoa, dessert, alcoholic beverage, herb, or spice tastes or aromas other than tobacco, and a product is presumed flavored if the retailer or manufacturer has made any statement or used packaging communicating a characterizing flavor.

Enforcement runs through the city manager or a designee under § 5-3-199(a). A violation is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $1,000.00, imprisonment for up to six months, or both, though the city attorney can charge it as an infraction instead, and each day of violation is a separate offense (§ 5-3-199(b)). Every violation is also declared a public nuisance subject to abatement by the city (§ 5-3-199(c)), and the city may issue administrative citations under Title 1's administrative citation article as an alternative remedy (§ 5-3-199(d)).

For the first 30 days after the article took effect, the city's exclusive remedy was an administrative citation issued without any fine, penalty, or appeal fee until administrative remedies were exhausted (§ 5-3-199(g)). Section 5-3-200 clarifies the article does not create any power or duty preempted by federal or state law. The article was adopted by Ord. No. 2019-199 on November 19, 2019.