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Page 2 of 10 City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.org The purpose of this staff report is to: 1) present the City Council with findings from staff’s outreach and research efforts since the study session, 2) introduce recommendations for limiting smoking in certain public areas, and 3) summarize additional proposed code changes. As to the permitting and monitoring of tobacco retailers, based on City Councilmember feedback, staff are assessing potential partnerships with other cities in San Mateo County in order to reduce the cost of enforcement and are conducting additional community outreach. Staff expect to complete their analysis in the next several months and anticipate scheduling a report for City Council action before July 2025. ANALYSIS Public Health Impacts of Smoking and Secondhand Smoke, Including Outdoors In the September 23, 2024, study session, staff presented high-level information about the public health impacts of smoking generally. However, since the proposed ordinance presented in this staff report is addressing the impacts of not only secondhand smoke, but the impacts of secondhand smoke outdoors, staff did additional research into those impacts. The research is summarized below. There is a well-documented history of tobacco use generating negative health and social impacts on individuals and communities. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, all nicotine products are addictive1 and increase the risk of developing serious health problems such as cancer, heart disease, and emphysema. Tobacco continues to be an urgent public health threat, with the World Health Organization estimating that tobacco kills more than 8 million people each year, worldwide, including killing an estimated 1.2 million non-smokers who are exposed to second-hand smoke. 2 Tobacco use and its impacts are not distributed equally. Only 7.6% of Californians with the highest levels of educational attainment report smoking, compared to 13.8% of those with only a high school degree, males smoke at two times the rate of females (15.2% vs. 7.8%)3 and youth ages 18-25 at higher rates (14.1%) than the general public (11.4%).4 For high school students, vaping is more prevalent than cigarette use, with 5.9% of youth under 18 using vapes and 1.2% using cigarettes.5 In California, over 67% of current 1 U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Why Tobacco Products are Addictive. Accessed November 6, 2024. https://www.fda.gov/tobacco-products/health-effects-tobacco-use/nicotine-why-tobacco-products-are-addictive 2 World Health Organization. Tobacco Fact Sheet. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/campaigns-and- initiatives/world-no-tobacco-day-2020/wntd-tobacco-fact-sheet.pdf 3 California Department of Public Health, California Tobacco Facts and Figures 2024. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DCDIC/CTCB/CDPH%20Document%20Library/ResearchandEvaluatio n/FactsandFigures/CaliforniaTobaccoFactsAndFigures_2024.pdf 4 The Toll of Tobacco in California, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (Feb. 17, 2023), https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/problem/toll-us/california. 5 California Department of Public Health, California Tobacco Facts and Figures 2024. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DCDIC/CTCB/CDPH%20Document%20Library/ResearchandEvaluatio n/FactsandFigures/CaliforniaTobaccoFactsAndFigures_2024.pdf 8.A. - Page 2 of 37 228