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Los Angeles County could soon become the nation’s largest jurisdiction to ban the sales of flavored tobacco — a move aimed at fighting what public health officials increasingly call an epidemic of e-cigarette use among teenagers.

Under a proposed ordinance that the Board of Supervisors is expected to consider next month, stores in unincorporated areas would no longer be able to offer any tobacco products with a flavor in any form. That includes e-cigarettes with fruity pods of liquid nicotine, traditional menthol cigarettes, mint chewing tobacco and cream cigars, among other products.

The plan also would require new or existing tobacco shops to get business licenses, according to a draft of the ordinance viewed by The Times.

The new rules would be enforced starting in February 2020. Businesses that don’t comply could have their licenses suspended. Public health advocates praised the county’s plan, saying it could help cut the alarming amount of e-cigarette vaping by young people.

“It’s a tremendous undertaking to make such a sweeping change in legislation,” said Jessica Sims, a healthcare administrator who is on the board of the American Heart Assn. in Los Angeles. “It’s the right thing to do. It will protect kids and reverse a trend.” While less harmful for adults than regular cigarettes, the long-term health effects of e-cigarettes remain unclear, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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