Shops in Florida that hold a state tobacco or nicotine dealer license can no longer stock, sell or hand out nitrous oxide, under a law that took effect Oct. 1. The rule covers smoke shops and vape stores in Winter Springs the same as anywhere else in the state.
The measure, Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 432, is known as "Meg's Law." It was sponsored by Sen. Yarborough, passed the Senate 37-0 and the House 111-0, and was approved by Gov. Ron DeSantis in June. It is now Chapter 2026-148, Laws of Florida.
What the law says
The new section 569.216 of Florida Statutes makes it unlawful for a licensed or permitted tobacco or nicotine dealer, or the dealer's agents and employees, to possess, sell, deliver or give nitrous oxide, directly or indirectly, on or from the licensed premises.
Breaking that rule is a third-degree felony, which can bring as much as five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, according to a Senate staff analysis.
The ban does not apply to grocery stores or supermarkets licensed through the state's agriculture department, but it does apply to convenience businesses. It also does not cover finished food products, such as canned whipped cream, in which the gas serves only as a propellant.
The Department of Business and Professional Regulation must write rules aimed at keeping nitrous oxide from being used to get intoxicated.
Who Meg was
The law is named for Margaret "Meg" Caldwell, a 29-year-old Clermont resident. FOX 35 Orlando reported that she died in November 2024 just outside a smoke shop in Orlando, a store where she had been buying big, flavored canisters of nitrous oxide. Her sister, Kathleen Dial, worked with lawmakers on the bill.
