--- title: Vaping, Offshore Drilling Banned in Florida on Same Ballot description: Vaping and offshore drilling were on the same 2018 Florida ballot for for a reasonable reason but people couldn't get enough. canonical: https://time.com/5447600/florida-amendment-9-offshore-drilling-vaping/ author: Ashley Hoffman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-11-07T13:53:19.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:55:52.467Z og:title: Florida Had Indoor Vaping and Offshore Drilling in the Same Proposition and People Were Confused og:description: Here's how the bizarre pairing came to be og:url: https://time.com/5447600/florida-amendment-9-offshore-drilling-vaping/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt66173d12f1d3bc67/69893e75457a5214d4d5fd06/vapingdrillingoffshore.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: DOUNIAMAG-US-INDUSTRY-TOBACCO-HEALTH-TEENS og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Florida Had Indoor Vaping and Offshore Drilling in the Same Proposition and People Were Confused twitter:description: Here's how the bizarre pairing came to be twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt66173d12f1d3bc67/69893e75457a5214d4d5fd06/vapingdrillingoffshore.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Florida Had Indoor Vaping and Offshore Drilling in the Same Proposition and People Were Confused by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Nov 7, 2018 1:53 PM UTC  A man exhales smoke from an electronic cigarette in Washington, DC on Oct. 2, 2018\. On April 3, 2019, the FDA announced it is investigating a possible link between vaping and seizures. A man exhales smoke from an electronic cigarette in Washington, DC on Oct. 2, 2018\. On April 3, 2019, the FDA announced it is investigating a possible link between vaping and seizures.EVA HAMBACH—AFP/Getty Images by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Nov 7, 2018 1:53 PM UTC Naturally, people had a lot of [thoughts about Florida](http://time.com/5447051/florida-amendment-4-felon-voting/) during the 2018 midterm elections, but one result stood out on a night of standout results. With a single amendment, [Florida](http://time.com/5445200/ron-desantis-florida-governors-election-results/) simultaneously banned [indoor vaping](http://time.com/5442252/are-e-cigarettes-safe/) and offshore drilling on Tuesday night, as more than 60% of voters chose to prohibit both. The amendment alters the state constitution to block the offshore extraction of gas and oil under the state’s waters, as well as vaping with e-cigarettes in the workplace. (More than 6.8 million votes were counted in the decision to curb vaping and conserve the Florida coastlines, according to [Florida Politics](http://floridapolitics.com/archives/280437-ballot-b-sides-voters-approve-amendments-7-10-11-and-12)) The combination of vaping inside and drilling for oil offshore was a major flash point online. > [](https://twitter.com/ayyynne/status/1060025476645863425) > [](https://twitter.com/JubileeDJ/status/1060052368904065025) > [](https://twitter.com/markberman/status/1060002265535266816) > [](https://twitter.com/link%5F%5Fblink/status/1060161526680686592) > [](https://twitter.com/DialAndrew/status/1060157232506200064) > [](https://twitter.com/prekkoy/status/1060023923461353472) Of course, a wide range of issues were on the table Tuesday night as voters considered a dozen initiatives. But why were these two matters addressed together on the same referendum? The answer, according to the Florida Constitution Revision Commission, is that both bans are [environmentally-minded](https://www.wfla.com/news/politics/florida-passes-amendment-9-banning-both-offshore-oil-drilling-and-indoor-vaping/1577495572). “The issues together send a message of clean air, clean water,” former Florida senator and author of the proposal to limit e-cigarette use Lisa Carlton told [The Grist](https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2018/10/this-single-ballot-measure-could-ban-both-fossil-fuels-and-vaping/). Meanwhile, critics of [offshore drilling](https://www.sun-sentinel.com/opinion/editorials/fl-op-edit-oil-drilling-20180905-story.html) argue that a [ban on coastal drilling](http://time.com/5088449/donald-trump-oil-drilling/) would safeguard Florida’s beaches — a major draw for tourists — from oil spills and other issues. Still, opinions were mixed on whether these two issues should have been paired in the same amendment. “The bundling of two unrelated provisions in this amendment has drawn criticism. Nevertheless, both components are important and worthy of approval,” a [_Sarasota Herald-Tribune_](https://www.heraldtribune.com/opinion/20181014/editorial-no-on-amendment-6-but-yes-on-7-and-9) editorial read. But not everyone agreed with the connection. “It makes no sense to the average voter why they were put together,” University of South Florida political science professor Susan MacManus told [The Daytona Beach _News Journal_](https://www.news-journalonline.com/news/20181024/florida-amendment-combining-vaping-drilling-ban-draws-criticism). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5447600/florida-amendment-9-offshore-drilling-vaping/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5447600/florida-amendment-9-offshore-drilling-vaping/"},"headline":"Florida Had Indoor Vaping and Offshore Drilling in the Same Proposition and People Were Confused","datePublished":"2018-11-07T13:53:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:55:52.467Z","description":"Here's how the bizarre pairing came to be","url":"https://time.com/5447600/florida-amendment-9-offshore-drilling-vaping/","keywords":["Newsfeed","politics","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt66173d12f1d3bc67/69893e75457a5214d4d5fd06/vapingdrillingoffshore.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ashley Hoffman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt66173d12f1d3bc67/69893e75457a5214d4d5fd06/vapingdrillingoffshore.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"DOUNIAMAG-US-INDUSTRY-TOBACCO-HEALTH-TEENS","caption":"DOUNIAMAG-US-INDUSTRY-TOBACCO-HEALTH-TEENS","creditText":"EVA HAMBACH—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5447600/florida-amendment-9-offshore-drilling-vaping/","name":"Florida Had Indoor Vaping and Offshore Drilling in the Same Proposition and People Were Confused"}}]}] ```