SAN BRUNO CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING
March 11, 2025
Public Comment(s)
March 10, 2025
City Council
City of San Bruno
567 El Camino Real
San Bruno, CA 94066
Dear Honorable Mayor and City Council Members,
We are writing to respectfully oppose the proposed ordinance that would adopt the current San Mateo County law restricting the sale of vapor products and imposing additional limitations on convenience store retailers in the City of San Bruno.
As members of the community and concerned stakeholders in the local business environment, we believe this ordinance would severely harm current city retailers and undermine their livelihoods as small business owners. Convenience stores are a vital part of the fabric of San Bruno, providing essential services and goods to residents beyond tobacco and nicotine products. Imposing restrictions such as banning vapor products, establishing new distance limitations for stores, and prohibiting the transfer of business licenses would create unnecessary barriers that could result in store closures, lost jobs, and reduced access to legal products for consumers.
The county's current law that San Bruno is debating goes too far in restricting the ability of retailers to operate and meet the needs of their customers. Many convenience stores are struggling across California as it is, and this Tobacco Retailer License proposal only adds more confusing bureaucratic hoops that retailers and suppliers would have to jump through.
Limiting the sale of vapor products will only push consumers toward unregulated and illegal sources and back to traditional combustible cigarettes, which completely undermines desired public health goals – even the Food & Drug Administration offers that vapor products can present a lower-risk than cigarettes.
That’s why that agency, following rigorous scientific review and potential youth appeal, has authorized 34 vapor products as appropriate for the protection of public health. Additionally, imposing arbitrary distance restrictions could further isolate retailers and diminish the diversity of services available in our community.
We strongly urge the City Council to carefully reconsider adopting this ordinance and instead engage with business owners, consumers, and community members to find balanced solutions that protect public health while supporting local businesses. Many of these businesses have been operating for years, and sudden and burdensome restrictions like these deserve proper feedback from the business community.
Therefore, we humbly suggest that the San Bruno City Council consider the following revisions to your proposal that offers a stronger balance of protecting local public health without harming local businesses:
- Provide an exemption to the vapor ban by allowing FDA-authorized vapor products to be sold.
- Provide a grandfather exemption for current retailers in good standing with the city from the distance restrictions and be allowed to transfer licenses.
Alessandra Magnasco, Governmental Affairs and Regulatory Director California Fuels and Convenience Alliance
Thank you for your attention to this important issue. We appreciate your thoughtful consideration of the impact this ordinance will have on our community.
Sincerely,
David Spross, Executive Director
National Association of Tobacco Outlets
Sukhi Sandhu, Chairman
National Coalition of Associations of 7-Eleven Franchisees Sanjiv Patel, Chairman of the Board
American Petroleum and Convenience Store Association
Inderjit Sidhu, President
San Francisco Monterey Bay 7-Eleven Franchise Owners Association Varish Goyal
Au Energy, LLC
Loop Neighborhood Markets
Robert Spurlock, Director Retail Marketing & HR
Double AA Corporation