Wisconsin Highlights

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

In 2025, tobacco control advocates worked with partners and volunteers to fight back against a bill that would create a loophole in Wisconsin's very popular clean indoor air law that prevents people from smoking tobacco indoors. Wisconsin has been a leader in protecting all its citizens from the known, indisputable hazards of secondhand smoke in the workplace and public places. Our law protecting both workers and patrons at all indoor public places has been in place since 2009, and it's working! Unfortunately, both houses of the Wisconsin legislature passed the bill to allow taverns to become “tobacco bars” and permit smoking indoors, so it was up to Governor Tony Evers, who vetoed the bill.

A bill to raise Wisconsin's tobacco products sales age to 21 was reintroduced this session. This will help eliminate confusion from retailers about who they can legally sell to, and is an important component of a comprehensive public health approach to reducing tobacco use.

Additionally, a bill to create a tax loophole for “heat not burn” tobacco products was introduced. These products should be taxed the same as cigarettes, and would be under current state law.

We must send a message to Big Tobacco that Wisconsinites are not softening their stance, we understand the detrimental impact of commercial tobacco products, and will continue to fight against these harmful products.

Community partners, funded by the state tobacco control program, implemented the Youth Voice Project where local coalition coordinators worked with schools to teach a lesson on vaping and nicotine and then asked students “How have vaping and nicotine impacted your life?” Partners collected over 2,200 stories from students who voiced frustration over the accessibility and normalization of vaping, their concerns about family members who vape or smoke, and how acutely aware they were of the dangers. Local coalition coordinators presented at the National Conference on Tobacco or Health and have used the information gathered to educate their communities about the impact of vaping and nicotine.

With your help, the American Lung Association will ensure that our leaders pay attention to lung health, as we advocate to pass laws and put in place programs that will reduce tobacco use and save lives.