Phoenix City Councilmember Michael Nowakowski is pushing for the end of sales of flavored tobacco products in the city.

A study that researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Washington University in St. Louis conducted recently revealed that 41 percent of public schools in Phoenix are within 1,000 feet of a tobacco retailer. The study also showed that there are nearly 11 times more tobacco sellers per square mile in the lowest-income neighborhoods than in the highest income ones.

Lawrence Robinson, president of the Roosevelt School District Governing Board, also said that research shows that the vape and smoke-shop industry is aggressively crowding communities with improper products, trying to attract children.

Local advocates and organizations recently teamed up with Nowakowski to seek an end to the sale of flavored tobacco products in an effort to decrease tobacco use among youths and save lives. Nowakowski plans to sponsor a city ordinance that would stop the sale of flavored tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, as well as flavored cigars, menthol cigarettes and smokeless tobacco. The ordinance would be subject to the full City Council’s vote.

For more information about the university study, visit aspirecenter.org/tobaccoretailers.