18 Date: October 13, 2026
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Councilwoman Tunua Thrash-Ntuk, Eighth District
Councilwoman Mary Zendejas, First District
Councilwoman Kristina Duggan, Third District
Subject: Codifying the State Nitrous Oxide Retail Prohibition in the Long Beach Municipal Code and Developing Local Strengthening Amendments.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation to direct the City Manager, in collaboration with the City Attorney and relevant City departments, to:
(1) Bring forward for City Council consideration, within sixty (60) days, an ordinance amending the Long Beach Municipal Code that codifies the prohibition on the retail sale of nitrous oxide established by Senate Bill 758 (Chapter 979, Statutes of 2026), conforms to the product and device prohibitions established by Senate Bill 936 (Chapter 317, Statutes of 2026), and provides for local enforcement upon its effective date through the City’s existing permit suspension and revocation, administrative citation, and business license remedies; and
(2) Return to the City Council within one hundred twenty (120) days with proposed amendments to strengthen the codified ordinance through greater local restrictions, informed by the areas identified in this letter and any additional regulatory or enforcement opportunities identified by staff, to the extent permissible under Business and Professions Code section 22984 and other applicable state law, without restricting legitimate uses, including, but not limited to, medical, dentistry, food preparation, industrial, manufacturing, and automotive services.
DISCUSSION
Nitrous oxide, sold for recreational inhalation and marketed as “whippets,” “NOS,” and “galaxy gas,” has become widely available through retail outlets that serve Honorable Mayor and City Council
October 13, 2026
2 no culinary, medical, or automotive purpose, often in large, brightly branded and flavored canisters nominally labeled as food-grade.1 On March 14, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration advised consumers against inhaling nitrous oxide from any size canister, tank, or charger, and on June 4, 2025, expanded that advisory to name specific brand-name products.2 A 2025 retail survey in Humboldt County found nitrous oxide products or paraphernalia displayed in plain sight at twenty-four percent of retail outlets visited, most often at smoke shops.3
The health consequences are well-documented. Nitrous oxide inactivates vitamin B12, producing peripheral neuropathy, sensory ataxia, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and, in severe cases, subacute combined degeneration (SCD) of the spinal cord; additional documented harms include cryogenic burn injury, barotrauma, hypoxia, and adverse reproductive effects.4 Statewide hospital data compiled by the California Department of Health Care Access and Information show that emergency department visits related to nitrous oxide increased 246 percent between 2018 and 2023, from 76 visits to 263, and that hospitalizations for SCD attributable to vitamin B deficiency increased 175 percent over the same period, from 48 to 132 cases.5 Over the same interval, nitrous-oxiderelated hospitalizations rose 24 percent, from 181 to 225, without a consistent upward trajectory, and the SCD case definition captures vitamin B deficiency broadly rather than nitrous-oxide-attributed cases alone. The reporting agency notes that the true burden of SCD is likely understated, because the condition is more often diagnosed in primary and specialty care than in hospital settings, and because nitrous oxide is not detected on standard toxicology screens.6
Until this year, state law addressed nitrous oxide almost entirely through the Penal Code, and in terms that did not reach an ordinary retail sale. Section 381b prohibits possession with intent to inhale for intoxication; section 381c prohibits sale to a person under eighteen; section 381d reaches a seller only where the buyer then 1 Orange County Health Care Agency, Special Report — Nitrous Oxide: Assessment of Use and Policy Recommendations (August 2025) [“OC HCA Special Report”], pp. 5–6. 2 OC HCA Special Report, p. 6, citing U.S. Food and Drug Administration consumer advisory issued March 14, 2025, and updated June 4, 2025.
3 Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services, Humboldt County Recreational Nitrous Oxide Retail Landscape Analysis (2025), as reported in OC HCA Special Report, p. 23. 4 OC HCA Special Report, pp. 6–8. Nitrous oxide is listed by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment under Proposition 65 as a chemical known to cause developmental and reproductive toxicity. Id. at p. 23.
5 California Department of Health Care Access and Information, Patient Discharge Data and Emergency Department Data, 2018–2023, as analyzed and reported in OC HCA Special Report, p. 11. Case definitions: nitrous oxide adverse events — ICD-10-CM T41.0x1A, T41.0x4A, T41.0x5A, T59.0XA (initial encounter; unintentional and undetermined intent only); SCD due to vitamin B deficiency — G32.0 with D51.8, D51.9, or E53.8.
6 OC HCA Special Report, pp. 8, 10–11.
Honorable Mayor and City Council
October 13, 2026
3 proximately causes great bodily injury or death; and section 381e requires sellers to record each transaction with the purchaser’s signature, residential address, and government-issued photo identification.13 Under that framework, an over-the-counter sale to an adult who declined to state a purpose was not itself an offense, and enforcement depended on proving the purchaser's undisclosed intent or on an injury that had already occurred.
The Legislature has now acted twice. On September 18, 2026, the Governor approved Senate Bill 936 (Blakespear), chaptered as Chapter 317 of the Statutes of 2026, which prohibits statewide the sale and distribution of nitrous oxide containers capable of holding more than eight grams or from which a person may directly inhale, of nitrous oxide having or marketed as having the taste or smell of any food, and of devices enabling inhalation, and which authorizes the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration to impose civil penalties and license consequences on tobacco retailers found in possession of prohibited products.14 On September 30, 2026, the Governor approved Senate Bill 758 (Umberg), chaptered as Chapter 979 of the Statutes of 2026, which adds section 22984 to the Business and Professions Code. Section 22984 provides that “a retailer shall not sell nitrous oxide, as defined in Section 381c of the Penal Code, at a retail location”; excludes from the term “retailer” a grocery store or general retail merchandise store with a grocery department, while expressly including a convenience store; and states:15
“A city or county, or city and county, may adopt an ordinance imposing greater restrictions on the retail sale of nitrous oxide than those imposed by this section, provided that the ordinance does not restrict legitimate uses, including, but not limited to, medical, dentistry, food preparation, industrial, manufacturing, and automotive services.”
Statutes enacted at a regular session take effect on January 1 of the following year, so both measures are expected to become operative on January 1, 2027.16 13 Cal. Penal Code §§ 381b, 381c, 381d, 381e; §§ 381d and 381e added by Stats. 2014, ch. 458 (AB 1735).
14 SB 936 (Blakespear), Stats. 2026, ch. 317, approved by the Governor and chaptered September 18, 2026; adding Health & Safety Code, Div. 104, Pt. 15, ch. 10 (commencing with § 119408), amending Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 22973.1, 22977.2, 22980.3, and 22980.5, and adding Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 22980.7 and 22980.8. Bill history:
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billHistoryClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB936. 15 SB 758 (Umberg), Stats. 2026, ch. 979, approved by the Governor and chaptered September 30, 2026; adding Bus. & Prof. Code § 22984; see Civ. Code § 7100. Bill information:
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB758. 16 Cal. Const. art. IV, § 8, subd. (c).
Honorable Mayor and City Council
October 13, 2026
4 Section 22984 gives the City both an express invitation and a defined limit. It names the subject on which a city may go further. It states the single condition that further regulation must satisfy, which turns the question from whether the City may act into which additional restrictions it should adopt and how each should be written. Because the statute’s list of legitimate uses is introduced by “including, but not limited to,” the condition is not satisfied merely by exempting the six named uses; each proposed restriction must be tested against legitimate use generally.
Codification is warranted because the state prohibitions are enforced through state processes, infraction citations and convictions under Chapter 317, and license action by the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration under both measures, none of which gives a Long Beach code enforcement officer or the City Prosecutor a local instrument. Placing the same prohibitions in the Long Beach Municipal Code attaches them to remedies the City already administers: administrative citation; Tobacco Retail Permit suspension and revocation under Chapter 5.81; business license action under Chapter 3.80; and nuisance abatement. The City Council has previously used Chapter 5.81 to remove a product class from retail shelves through the flavored tobacco prohibition approved on April 13, 2021.21, 22 Three features of the state framework define where local action would do the most work. First, section 22984 applies to retailers within the meaning of the Cigarette and Tobacco Products Licensing Act of 2003, to which it is added, and excludes grocery stores and general merchandise stores with a grocery department; outlets that hold no cigarette or tobacco license are outside its reach.23 Second, Chapter 317 reaches containers above eight grams, directly inhalable containers, flavored products, and inhalation devices. Hence, an unflavored container of eight grams or less, the standard whipped-cream charger, sold by the box, remains lawful at outlets outside section 22984. Third, state remedies proceed through the courts and a state agency, while local administrative citation and permit suspension are administered by the City and take effect more quickly.
The City’s authority to act rests on independent grounds as well. Article XI, section 7 of the California Constitution empowers a city to make and enforce within its limits all local police, sanitary, and other ordinances not in conflict with general laws.24 Health and 21 Long Beach Municipal Code ch. 5.81 (Tobacco Retail Permit), adopted February 12, 2008; § 5.81.090 (permit suspension schedule); City of Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services, Tobacco Retail Enforcement Program; City Council action of April 13, 2021, permanently prohibiting the sale of certain flavored tobacco products.
22 Long Beach Municipal Code ch. 3.80 (business licenses). 23 Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 22971, 22984; Civ. Code § 7100. 24 Cal. Const. art. XI, § 7.
Honorable Mayor and City Council
October 13, 2026
5 Safety Code section 101450 directs the governing body of a city to take the measures necessary to preserve and protect the public health, a responsibility of particular relevance in Long Beach, which operates one of three city health jurisdictions in California.29 California courts have repeatedly upheld the authority of local jurisdictions to regulate business activity to discourage violations of the law, including through retail licensing and product-specific sales prohibitions.30
Regional practice points in the same direction. The City of Rialto adopted the first municipal nitrous oxide sales prohibition in the nation in 2017; the County of Orange adopted Division 19 of Title 3 of its Codified Ordinances on February 25, 2025, effective March 27, 2025 for unincorporated areas; the City of Garden Grove adopted Chapter
6.50 of its Municipal Code on March 10, 2026, effective April 10, 2026; and the Cities of Stanton, Ukiah, Santa Ana, and Costa Mesa have adopted or advanced comparable measures.31,
32 On May 12, 2026, the Los Angeles City Council directed its City Attorney to prepare an ordinance restricting the sale of nitrous oxide by tobacco and cannabis retailers.33 Each of these jurisdictions acted before the Legislature expressly authorized local restrictions; Long Beach would act with that authorization in place.
The recommendation proceeds in two phases so that the City gains local enforcement authority promptly, without rushing measures that warrant further study.
The first phase is a codification ordinance, brought forward by the City Manager in collaboration with the City Attorney, that places the section 22984 prohibition and the conforming Chapter 317 product and device prohibitions in the Long Beach Municipal Code with local remedies attached. Because the prohibition, its scope, and its exclusions are fixed by statute, that ordinance involves no new policy choices. It can return for first reading within sixty days, positioning the City to enforce the state prohibitions locally as close as practicable to their January 1, 2027, operative date.
The second phase consists of proposed amendments to the codified ordinance, developed by the City Manager in collaboration with the City Attorney and relevant City departments, and, as appropriate, in consultation with the City Prosecutor and the Long 29 Cal. Health & Safety Code § 101450. Long Beach, Pasadena, and Berkeley operate California’s three city health jurisdictions.
30 Cohen v. Board of Supervisors (1985) 40 Cal.3d 277; Bravo Vending v. City of Rancho Mirage (1993) 16 Cal.App.4th 383; Prime Gas, Inc. v. City of Sacramento (2010) 184 Cal.App.4th 697. 31 City of Rialto Ordinance No. 1588 (March 14, 2017); Orange County Board of Supervisors, Item S36B (February 25, 2025); City of Stanton Ordinance No. 1162 (April 24, 2025); Ukiah City Code § 2371; see OC HCA Special Report, pp. 23–24.
32 Garden Grove Municipal Code ch. 6.50, §§ 6.50.030–6.50.050, adopted March 10, 2026, effective April 10, 2026.
33 Los Angeles City Council File No. 24-1220; Council action of May 12, 2026.
Honorable Mayor and City Council
October 13, 2026
6 Beach Police Department. Any amendment that extends the ordinance beyond the state floor would be expected to preserve legitimate uses through an exemption for each use the statute names: medical and dental care, including dispensing by licensed pharmacies and pharmacy wholesalers; food preparation, including bona fide wholesale supply to commercial kitchens and pre-packaged food products in which nitrous oxide serves solely as a propellant; industrial and manufacturing processes; and automotive services, together with a general clause preserving any other legitimate use. Each exemption can be conditioned so that it does not become a retail channel, as Garden Grove has done by limiting its automotive exemption to facilities approved by the California Bureau of Automotive Repair and its wholesale exemption to suppliers without knowledge or reason to know of intended misuse.39 The following areas are worthy of exploration:
Regulating the manner of sale. Extending the prohibition to smoke shops, vape shops, tobacco and cannabis retailers, convenience stores, liquor stores, service stations, and novelty or party-supply outlets, whether or not the outlet holds a state cigarette or tobacco license; making compliance with the recordkeeping requirements of Penal Code section 381e a condition of any City permit or business license; prohibiting self-service display; requiring point-of-sale signage; and attaching local administrative citation, permit, business license, and nuisance remedies, with referral to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration where a licensed tobacco retailer is involved. These measures govern where and how nitrous oxide is sold rather than whether legitimate users may obtain it.
Youth sensitivity zones. Designating sensitivity zones around schools, childcare centers, parks and playgrounds, libraries, youth centers, and other places where children and youth congregate, within which the consumer sale of nitrous oxide would be prohibited, or subject to heightened conditions, inspection priority, and enhanced penalties, at any outlet that otherwise remains permitted to sell culinary chargers; complemented by per-transaction quantity limits at those outlets citywide.
These areas are illustrative rather than exhaustive. The City Manager is encouraged to research additional opportunities to strengthen the ordinance and to include in the proposed amendments any further measures the City Attorney determines are permissible under state law, together with a brief explanation of any 39 Garden Grove Municipal Code § 6.50.040; Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 4030, 4036, 4037 (pharmacist, pharmacy, and pharmacist intern defined).
Honorable Mayor and City Council
October 13, 2026
7 area examined and not recommended. Subjects that may merit review include approaches adopted by other California jurisdictions under section 22984; compliance experience following the January 1, 2027 operative date; a survey of Long Beach retail outlets and a review of local incident data; retailer education and compliance checks preceding enforcement; recordkeeping by wholesalers supplying Long Beach outlets; the safe collection and disposal of pressurized cylinders; and a periodic report to the City Council after the ordinance takes effect, so that individual measures may be expanded, adjusted, or retired in light of experience. Input from affected retailers, public health partners, schools, and community stakeholders would inform each; the selection, sequencing, and form of any measure remain with staff and the City Attorney. Any permit or inspection fee proposed to recover program costs should be set at no more than the reasonable cost of the regulatory activity, so that it remains outside the constitutional definition of a tax.41
FISCAL IMPACT
No fiscal impact review was able to be conducted due to the urgency of this item.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully submitted,
Tunua Thrash-Ntuk, Councilwoman, Eighth District
Mary Zendejas, Councilwoman, First District
41 Cal. Const. art. XIII C, § 1(e).
Honorable Mayor and City Council
October 13, 2026
8 Kristina Duggan, Councilmember, Third District