South Carolina Highlights

Tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States and in South Carolina. To address this enormous toll, the American Lung Association calls for the following actions to be taken by South Carolina's elected officials:

During the 2025 legislative session, big tobacco companies once again attempted to establish an e-cigarette registry based on U.S. Food and Drug Administration pre-market tobacco application status in Senate Bill 287 and House Bill 3728. While these pieces of legislation gained more momentum than in years past, neither passed in both chambers making it eligible for the governor's signature or veto.

Newly introduced by the industry in South Carolina were bills to reduce taxes on heated tobacco products by significant amounts. House Bill 4303 and Senate Bill 519, also known as cigarettes for heating, did not see passage by both chambers making it eligible for the governor's signature or veto. The American Lung Association and partners continue to educate policymakers on evidence-based tobacco prevention and control policies, but did not see much forward progress on this front in 2025. Funding from the state settlement with the e-cigarette company Juul was allocated to the state tobacco control program supplementing the $5 million in state funding the program receives each year from cigarette tax revenue.

In 2026, the Lung Association will continue to work with partners to educate public officials on the health and economic benefits of strong tobacco control polices, including the state policy goals highlighted above.