12/07/2025

MADISON - Wisconsin lawmakers are reintroducing a bill to align state tobacco law with federal regulations that have required buyers to be at least 21.  Since 2019, federal law has prohibited tobacco sales to anyone under 21, but Wisconsin state law still lists the legal purchasing age as 18. Assembly members say these conflicting regulations create confusion for retailers and law enforcement.  Advocates for the bill also say raising the age will give local law enforcement more defined authority to issue tickets and keep nicotine out of young people’s hands.  The bill’s future in the Legislature remains uncertain. In 2020 and 2022, the Assembly passed bills to raise the age to 21, but the bills never made it past the state Senate.