Relating to the operation near a public or private primary or secondary school of a retail establishment selling cigarettes, e-cigarettes, vaping apparatuses, or tobacco products; creating a criminal offense.
SB 464 would make it a criminal offense for a retailer to operate a store selling cigarettes, e-cigarettes, vaping apparatuses, or tobacco products within 1,000 feet of a public or private primary or secondary school. The bill defines “vaping apparatus” broadly to include devices such as vape pens, e-cigars, e-pipes, e-hookahs, and their components, parts, accessories, and liquids whether or not they contain nicotine or flavoring.
The bill also directs the comptroller to revoke the relevant tobacco or cigarette permits of a retailer convicted under the new offense, and it requires rules allowing the retailer to sell remaining inventory to another retailer instead of having it seized. The law would apply to both public and private schools, measure distance by property lines and intersections, and include a special rule for establishments in multistory buildings above the fifth floor. It expressly does not apply to employees of retailers and does not preempt local ordinances that are equal to or more stringent than the state standard.
SB 464 would amend Chapter 161 of the Health and Safety Code to create a new Class A misdemeanor for certain tobacco and vaping retailers located within 1,000 feet of a school, while also affecting permit enforcement under Chapters 147, 154, and 155 of the Tax Code. It would give the comptroller authority to revoke permits after conviction and to adopt inventory-disposition rules for revoked retailers. The bill would also preserve local government authority to regulate these businesses more strictly than the state baseline.
The available voting history suggests the bill moved with strong support, including 28-2 votes on suspension of the rules, suspension of the three-day rule, and third reading. No committee transcript is available, but the broad margins indicate the measure was generally well received and not highly controversial in floor action. The bill’s framing around school protection and youth access to tobacco and vaping products likely contributed to that support.
The main points of potential contention are the breadth of the 1,000-foot school buffer, the creation of criminal liability for retailers, and the permit-revocation consequences that follow a conviction. Retailers and business advocates may object that the restriction is expansive, especially because it covers both public and private schools and applies to a wide range of tobacco and vaping products. Local governments, by contrast, are expressly preserved in their ability to adopt stricter rules, so any dispute is more likely to center on the state-level baseline and its enforcement than on local preemption.