Morris Township mayor: Vaping vote postponed for more public discussion

Types of e-cigarettes. Source: CDC.gov
Types of e-cigarettes. Source: CDC.gov
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Statement from Mayor Jeff Grayzel on new Vaping Ordinance

When I was elected this past year one of my promises was to promote open government and to get resident input on the important decisions we need to make.

That starts right NOW. The first ordinance of the year (see below) is a well-intentioned effort to tackle a growing epidemic amongst teens across our entire country relating to e-cigarettes and “vaping.”

We have received mostly positive responses from members of the community to our proposed local ordinance, but there is understandable apprehension from some parents.

I very much appreciate the comments the Township Committee has received thus far from our residents and I am glad that it has sparked a broader discussion in our community about tackling this problem.

I have requested our municipal professionals to provide additional background information that will explain the actual issues we are facing in our town as well as the rationale behind the introduction of the ordinance.

This information is being prepared and will be distributed shortly to the community. If you want to receive this information and are not already signed up for our “Municipal Messenger” E-communications then please send an email to sign up. This background information will also be posted to our website.

In addition, I want to assure our residents that we will not rush through the approval of this local legislation. I want to ensure that members of the public have clarity on both our intent and how the measure will be enforced. I also want concerned parents to have the opportunity to ask questions in a public forum.

For this reason we are going to postpone the scheduled vote on this ordinance from our Feb. 20, 2019, meeting to our March 20 meeting – AND at our Feb. 20 meeting we will be conducting a public Q&A session related to this E-cigarette/Vaping ordinance.

I plan to have our Chief of Police there as well as a health professional to assist us in answering questions.

I urge residents to attend our Feb. 20 meeting to put their questions on the public record and allow our municipal officials to address your concerns during this public forum. In the interim, the public may email me any comments they have to me

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