The House Common Education Committee has passed a bill that will prohibit vapor products on school property.

Senate Bill 33, authored by Rep. Mark Vancuren, R-Owasso, and Sen. J.J. Dossett, D-Owasso, modifies the 24.7 Tobacco-Free Schools Act. The committee passed the bill 16-0. It is now eligible to be considered by the entire House.

“This legislation protects young people who use vapor products as well as those who would be harmed by the second-hand vapors emitted from such devices,” Vancuren said. “It allows our school districts to remain smoke- and vapor-free places where students can learn in healthy environments.”

Vancuren said it would be up to local districts to set their own discipline policies around the prohibited use of vapor products. He also noted information from the Surgeon General of the United States that supports this prohibition.

E-cigarette use among U.S. middle and high school students increased 900 percent from 2011 to 2015, before, declining for the first time between 2015 and 2017. However, current e-cigarette use increased 78 percent among high school students during the past year, from 11.7 percent in 2017 to 20.8 percent in 2018. In 2018, more than 3.6 million U.S. youth, including 1 in 5 high school students and 1 in 20 middle school students, currently use e-cigarettes. In 2016, one-third of U.S. middle and high school students who ever used e-cigarettes had used marijuana in e-cigarettes.

Vancuren is a 30-year public school and college educator and basketball coach.