TRENTON, N.J. — The Attorney General's Office hit a Clifton vape distributor and 17 smoke shops with a $122,279 penalty on Friday for illegal flavored vape sales. The enforcement action came during a week of federal regulatory shifts: on May 5, the FDA authorized the first non-tobacco and non-menthol electronic nicotine delivery systems. On May 13, twenty-one state attorneys general urged the agency to reject draft guidance easing flavored e-cigarette approvals.

Attorney General Jennifer Davenport announced the Consent Order against King Distribution LLC and its network of retailers across four northern New Jersey counties. The Clifton-based tobacco products distributor and 17 related businesses entered a Consent Order imposing $100,000 in civil penalties and $22,279 in investigation reimbursement.

The retailers sit in Passaic, Hudson, Bergen and Essex counties. Eight of them are in Passaic alone, with five in Hudson and two each in Bergen and Essex. The Division listed each retailer by business name, street address, town and county in the public filing.

Amigo Smoke Shop LLC holds five of the 17 licenses, clustered along Bergenline Avenue in Union City and West New York. City Smoke Shop LLC controls four locations in Paterson, Passaic and Saddle Brook; its shop number three in Saddle Brook is depicted in the headline image. Magma Smoke Shop LLC operates in Bloomfield, Nutley and Paterson. The remaining five are single-location LLCs in Wayne, Passaic and Paterson.

King Distribution supplied the shops from Clifton. Import records show the company received shipments from manufacturers in China. The distributor previously received a federal Warning Letter in September 2023 for marketing unauthorized electronic nicotine delivery systems. The FDA cited the Lava 2 Pink Pod System and Lava 2 Watermelon with Mint Pods as youth-appealing flavors lacking premarket authorization. The letter went to 356 Getty Avenue Building 6 in Clifton. Lava Vape USA LLC, at 75 Roosevelt Avenue in Butler, also received a copy.

The state action comes as federal regulators reduce enforcement pressure. On May 5, the FDA authorized the marketing of four Glas electronic nicotine delivery systems through the premarket tobacco product application pathway. The authorized pods include Classic Menthol and Fresh Menthol, as well as Gold and Sapphire, identified by NBC News as mango and blueberry, respectively. This action marks the FDA's first authorization of non-tobacco and non-menthol ENDS products.

The products use device access restriction technology. The user must verify their age and identity with a government-issued ID and pair the device with a smartphone via Bluetooth. Following verification, the device will not operate if separated from the phone. The app also conducts random biometric check-ins to periodically confirm the registered user is the one using the device. The May 5 decision clears these specific ENDS products by Glas for legal marketing in the U.S. to adults 21 and older.

On May 8, the FDA announced it would not prioritize action against unauthorized vapes and nicotine pouches while reviewing pending applications. The agency said it would continue working with Customs and Border Protection to seize illegal imports at borders to prevent them from reaching shelves or underage users. On May 13, twenty-one state attorneys general including Davenport fired back, urging the FDA to reject draft guidance easing flavored e-cigarette approvals. California Attorney General Rob Bonta led the coalition.

New Jersey's own ban on flavored vapor products took effect in April 2020. It was the first state in the nation to prohibit retail sale of mint, candy, fruit and chocolate nicotine products.

Six years after the ban took effect, the Division of Consumer Affairs has intensified enforcement. Last year investigators inspected 28 flavored vape businesses, issued 16 Notices of Violation and assessed $72,000 in penalties. In August 2024 the Division hit 19 retailers with $85,500 in penalties. The citations targeted shops in shore towns and convenience stores. In January 2025 the Division sent warning letters to nearly 11,000 tobacco retailers, reminding them that flavored vape sales were illegal. The letters were sent as part of a multi-state coalition of attorneys general and state agencies targeting illegal vape sales across state lines.

The current action adds a distributor to the enforcement target and names 17 retailers operating under common brands in urban corridors. The 2024 citations hit 19 scattered retailers without identifying a supplier. All 17 retailers in the May 2026 order are new names with no overlap to the 2024 citations.

The retailers operate under a patchwork of local tobacco rules. North Bergen requires local licenses and bans menthol and all flavored tobacco products effective January 2026, with fines up to $1,000 per day. Paterson has been debating smoke shop licensing and zoning limits since late 2025. The state Consent Order cuts through this patchwork, barring the 17 businesses from selling flavored vapes regardless of municipal rules.

The Consent Order prohibits King Distribution from distributing flavored vapor products to any New Jersey retailer and bars the 17 shops from selling them. The agreement also prohibits anyone who owns or controls the distributor or any of the retailers from forming new flavored vape businesses in the state. King Distribution must notify buyers that retail sale of flavored products is illegal when conducting lawful sales. The company and retailers admitted no liability.

The settlement resolves administrative allegations under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, which presumes any violation of state or federal law to be an unlawful practice. Assistant Section Chief Monisha A. Kumar and Deputy Attorney General Monica E. Finke handled the case under Section Chief Jesse J. Sierant of the Consumer Fraud Prosecution Section.

Davenport emphasized youth protection in her statement.

"Flavored vape products are dangerous for kids and teens, and we are committed to keeping them out of our state," she said. "Today's announcement demonstrates that New Jersey is not backing down from the fight to stop the spread of illegal flavored vape products. We will use every legal tool at our disposal to hold violators accountable, because kids deserve a future that is free from companies flooding the market with products that lead to nicotine addiction."

Jeremy E. Hollander, Acting Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs, cited the Consumer Fraud Act as the legal foundation for the enforcement.

"Any commercial practice that violates State or federal law–including the sale of banned products–is presumed to be an unlawful practice under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act," said Hollander. "As today's action demonstrates, the Division will not hesitate to use this authority to protect our residents and preserve the integrity of New Jersey's marketplace."

The $122,279 penalty is the largest the Division has assessed for flavored vape sales. It bars 17 retailers across four northern New Jersey counties from selling flavored products and blocks their Clifton supplier from restocking them. New Jersey's six-year-old ban covers all flavored retail sales regardless of what the FDA authorizes, a state track that runs parallel to federal policy.

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Sources

• New Jersey Office of Attorney General, "AG Davenport Secures $100,000 Consumer Fraud Penalty Against Flavored Vape Distributor and its Network of Retailers" (May 15, 2026)

• U.S. Food and Drug Administration, "FDA Expands Market Access, Authorizes New ENDS Products" (May 5, 2026)

• U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Warning Letter to King Distribution LLC d/b/a Lava Vape USA, MARCS-CMS 667203 (September 14, 2023)

• U.S. Food and Drug Administration, "FDA Warns Retailers to Stop Selling Unauthorized Tobacco Products, Including Elf Bar and Lava" (March 2024)

• California Office of the Attorney General, "AG Bonta Leads Coalition of 21 AGs in Urging FDA to Reject Draft Guidance Easing Path to Approval for Flavored E-Cigarettes" (May 13, 2026)

• STAT News, "FDA to deprioritize enforcement against unauthorized vapes and nicotine pouches" (May 12, 2026)

• New Jersey Office of Attorney General, "Division of Consumer Affairs Issues Notices of Violation to 19 Retailers for Illegal Sales of Flavored Vape Products" (August 27, 2024)

• New Jersey Office of Attorney General, "AG Platkin: Division of Consumer Affairs Issues Warning Letters to Nearly 11,000 NJ Businesses" (January 16, 2025)

• North Bergen Township, "NB's New Tobacco Retail License Law Takes Effect Aug. 1 to Strengthen Youth Protection" (July 18, 2025)

• Margaret Schmidt, NJ.com/The Jersey Journal, "North Bergen tobacco sellers must seek local license under new law taking effect in 2025" (December 23, 2024)

• East Bay Echo, "Union City considers banning sales of vaping products" (February 5, 2024)

• TAPinto Paterson, "Paterson Smoke Shop Ordinance Sparks Tense Debate Over Enforcement and Zoning Limits" (November 2025)

• ImportKey/ImportGenius, customs shipping records for King Distribution LLC (2023–2025)

• New Jersey Revised Statutes, N.J.S.A. 56:8-3.1 and N.J.S.A. 56:8-13