New York Attorney General Letitia James announced that the Mohawk Valley will receive over $3.4 million from a historic $462 million multistate settlement secured from JUUL Labs Inc. (JUUL) for its role in the youth vaping epidemic. New York state will receive a total of $112.7 million through this settlement, which will be distributed to every county, Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), and the five largest cities in the state to support programs aimed at reducing and preventing underage vaping.
“JUUL promised a safer alternative to smoking but instead unleashed a nationwide public health crisis by marketing its addictive products to kids,” said Attorney General James. “Vaping has caused countless health issues and exacerbated youth mental health struggles. My office has secured over $3.4 million for the Mohawk Valley from JUUL to right these wrongs, and through education, prevention, and enforcement, we will work to stop the youth vaping epidemic.”
The funds will be allocated between counties and BOCES in the Mohawk Valley as follows:
Counties:
- Fulton County: $377,149.09
- Herkimer County: $338,122.50
- Montgomery County: $302,440.88
- Oneida County: $849,282.44
- Otsego County: $257,184.58
- Schoharie County: $255,547.66
BOCES:
- Hamilton-Fulton-Montgomery BOCES: $244,033.35
- Herkimer-Fulton-Hamilton-Otsego BOCES: $146,946.02
- Madison-Oneida BOCES: $231,265.86
- Oneida-Herkimer-Madison BOCES: $355,157.99
- Otsego-Delaware-Schoharie-Greene BOCES: $123,038.86
After JUUL launched in 2015, e-cigarette use among New York high school students increased significantly. By 2019, there was a national outbreak of severe vaping-related illnesses with more than 2,500 hospitalizations reported.
In November 2019, Attorney General James sued JUUL for deceptive marketing practices targeting young people. In April 2023, she secured the largest multistate agreement with JUUL and its former directors and executives for their role in fueling the youth vaping epidemic.
The settlement funds are designated for evidence-based measures to combat underage vaping and e-cigarette addiction across five categories:
1. Public education campaigns.
2. Community-based anti-vaping programs.
3. Vaping cessation services.
4. Enforcement of vaping laws.
5. Public health research into e-cigarette use among young people.
Additionally, JUUL is required to make significant changes to its sales and marketing tactics including refraining from any marketing that targets youth and performing regular retail compliance checks.
The settlement was led by Senior Advisor M.Umair Khan along with Assistant Attorneys General Hailey DeKraker and Noah Popp among others from various divisions within the Attorney General's office.