Single-Use E-Cigarette Ban Would Eliminate Harm Reduction in the Pine Tree State

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Key Points:

• Proposal Overview: Maine’s LD 754 would ban the sale, use, and possession of single-use (disposable) e-cigarettes, eliminating the most commonly used vaping products relied on by adults to stay smoke-free.

• Scope & Severity: The bill broadly defines single-use products and could expand further by directing the state to study extended producer responsibility for other vaping devices. It also uniquely penalizes consumers, imposing escalating civil fines of $500, $1,000, and $5,000 for possession or use.

• Public Health Impact: Disposable e-cigarettes are strongly associated with declines in smoking. In Maine, adult vaping rose 71.1 percent from 2016 to 2024 while adult smoking fell 27.3 percent, translating to 34,215 more adult vapers and 46,631 fewer smokers.

• Equity Concerns: Vaping is more prevalent among lower-income and less-educated adults, meaning the ban and fines would disproportionately burden those most at risk of smoking-related disease.

• Environmental Rationale Questioned: While framed as an environmental measure, the actual environmental impacts of disposables remain poorly understood, whereas their harm-reduction benefits are well documented.

• Evidence on Harm Reduction: E-cigarettes, including disposables, are substantially less harmful than cigarettes and effective for cessation. The FDA has authorized 39 e-cigarette products, and a 2025 Cochrane review found vaping more effective than traditional nicotine replacement therapies for quitting.

• Cross-Border & Revenue Risks: With neighboring states maintaining legal access, the ban could drive cross-border purchases, reduce in-state tax revenue, and undermine recent cigarette tax policy.

• Enforcement & Safety Risks: Criminalizing possession increases the likelihood of unequal enforcement and harmful police interactions, raising serious civil-liberty concerns.

• Policy Alternatives: Rather than bans, Maine could pursue recycling, collection, and disposal programs to address environmental issues without dismantling harm reduction.

• Bottom Line: LD 754 prioritizes prohibition over evidence, risking public-health setbacks, inequitable enforcement, and unintended consequences while removing a critical off-ramp from smoking for thousands of Mainers.

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Legislation in Maine aims to ban the sale of single-use e-cigarettes. While the bill purports to address the environmental impacts of vaping products – particularly concerns related to their battery components – removing the most commonly used category of e-cigarettes would harm tens of thousands of adults in the Pine Tree State who rely on these products to remain smoke-free. Moreover, when combined with Maine’s recent cigarette tax increase, the proposal risks unintended consequences, including increased cross-border purchasing and the elimination of in-state tax revenue.

Legislative Document 754 would create a new section of Maine law prohibiting the sale, use, and possession of single-use e-cigarettes, including “electronic cigarettes, electronic cigars, electronic pipes, electronic hookahs, and so-called vape pens.” The bill defines a single-use e-cigarette as a product “designed for one-time use and not rechargeable,” a definition that captures the majority of disposable vapor products currently used by adults.

In addition to the outright ban, the legislation directs the Maine Department of Environmental Protection to convene a stakeholder group to examine the feasibility of an extended producer responsibility program, including for batteries used in vaping products that are not classified as single-use. This signals that the bill’s scope could expand beyond disposables, raising further concerns for adult consumers and manufacturers alike.

Most troubling, however, is the bill’s decision to penalize individual consumers. LD 754 would impose escalating civil fines for the use or possession of prohibited products: $500 for a first violation, $1,000 for a second violation, and $5,000 for third and subsequent violations. Few tobacco or nicotine policies in the United States go so far as to criminalize consumer possession, making this proposal particularly severe.

Similar legislation has been introduced elsewhere. In New York, Senate Bill 2223 and Assembly Bill 6444 would ban the sale of single-use e-cigarettes and single-use filters. In New Jersey, Senate Bill 4271 proposed a mandatory extended producer responsibility framework requiring manufacturers to operate a statewide system for the collection, recycling, and disposal of e-cigarettes and their components.

Internationally, several countries have relied on environmental arguments to justify bans on disposable e-cigarettes. In December 2024, Belgium became the first country to prohibit disposable vapes, citing youth use and environmental protection. France followed in February 2025, with officials asserting that a ban would reduce environmental waste and promote “responsible consumption.” In June 2025, the United Kingdom banned disposable vape sales, labeling them “environmentally destructive,” and Ireland followed with a ban later in 2025.

Despite the growing rhetoric, the environmental impacts of single-use e-cigarettes remain poorly understood, while their public-health role is far clearer. E-cigarette use is strongly associated with declines in adult smoking rates.

According to 2024 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 6.5 percent of Maine adults aged 18 or older were currently using e-cigarettes, representing a 71.1 percent increase from 2016, when 3.8 percent of adults vaped. Over the same period, adult smoking declined by 27.3 percent, falling from 19.8 percent in 2016 to 14.4 percent in 2024. This translates to an estimated 34,215 additional adult e-cigarette users and 46,631 fewer adult smokers statewide.

As with smoking, e-cigarette use in Maine is disproportionately concentrated among lower-income and less-educated adults. In 2024, 8.9 percent of adults earning $25,000 or less per year reported vaping, compared to 5.3 percent of those earning $50,000 or more. Similarly, 9 percent of adults without a high school diploma or GED were vaping, compared to just 2.8 percent of adults with a college degree.

Contrary to political rhetoric, e-cigarettes – including single-use products – are substantially less harmful than combustible cigarettes and are effective tools for smoking cessation. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized the sale of 39 e-cigarette products after determining that their use is “appropriate for the protection of public health” and poses lower risks than combustible cigarettes. Further, a 2025 Cochrane review of 104 studies found that adults using nicotine e-cigarettes were more likely to quit smoking than those using traditional nicotine replacement therapies.

The decision to impose fines for the use and possession of products that remain legal and readily available in neighboring states is also deeply problematic. Such policies risk disproportionately impacting low-income individuals and increasing unnecessary interactions with law enforcement. History has shown the dangers of aggressive enforcement of tobacco laws, most notably in the death of Eric Garner. Lawmakers should avoid policies that invite similar outcomes.

While addressing environmental concerns related to single-use e-cigarettes is a legitimate goal, outright bans ignore the benefits of harm reduction and invite significant unintended consequences. Maine policymakers should instead take the time to evaluate the actual environmental impact of these products and consider alternatives – such as collection, recycling, and disposal programs – that mitigate waste without undermining public health progress.

Nothing in this analysis is intended to influence the passage of legislation, and it does not necessarily represent the views of Tobacco Harm Reduction 101.