Vending

Illinois city considers restrictions on vape vending machines

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September 23, 2026

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Bloomington, Illinois, officials are considering whether to prohibit vape vending machines or allow them with additional safeguards, according to a WGLT News report. City Corporation Counsel Chris Spanos told the City Council that other Illinois communities have generally chosen among three approaches: banning the machines, requiring an employee to complete each sale or using an electronic system that requires approval from an employee on-site.

Illinois law allows vape vending machines in locations restricted to customers 21 and older and in liquor establishments where management directly controls and supervises their use. Operators would need city and state tobacco licenses, and vaping products could not be stocked in the same machine as food or other non-tobacco merchandise.

Several council members expressed concern that self-service machines could make nicotine products more accessible to minors, while others appeared open to allowing the devices with stronger controls. City Clerk Leslie Yocum said she was unaware of any vape vending machines operating in Bloomington and had not received a tobacco-license application for one. The council discussed the issue but took no vote or formal action.