The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday cleared the way for California to enforce a voter-approved ban on flavored tobacco products in the U.S.'s most populous state, rejecting a proposal by RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co to block the ban on the grounds that the policy conflicts with federal law.

A judge overwhelmingly rejected an urgent request by British American Tobacco (BATS.L ) unit RJ Reynolds and other plaintiffs to suspend a ban on sales of all flavored tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, in the state11 A ballot measure on 8 August.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law in 2020 banning products including menthol cigarettes and marshmallow-flavored vaping products in response to concerns about rising vaping and tobacco use .

Implementation of the ban was delayed after a coalition representing the tobacco industry gathered enough signatures to send voters on a measure to prevent California from becoming the largest state to date to ban the sale of flavored tobacco products.

But nearly two-thirds of voters voted for the measure known as Proposition 31, which approved the sales ban.

A day after the vote, RJ Reynolds filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent California officials from allowing the ban to go into effect on Dec. 21 as planned. It joined groups representing tobacco retailers, neighborhood market associations and a vape store in the lawsuit.

A report by federal health officials between January and May of this year estimated that 2.55 million U.S. middle and high school students vaped. Of those who reported using e-cigarettes, nearly 85 percent said they used flavored versions.

The law would make California the second state to ban the sale of all flavored tobacco products, after Massachusetts in 2019. Several other states have restricted flavored vaping products, and several cities have adopted bans of their own.

The FDA banned all flavors in Juul and other pod-based e-cigarettes in 2020 except tobacco and menthol. In June, the FDA tried to ban the sale of all Juul e-cigarettes, but later shelved the order.

In addition to e-cigarettes, the FDA released a long-awaited proposal to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars in April, a victory for anti-smoking advocates, although it is expected to take years to implement.

In a lawsuit challenging the California ban, RJ Reynolds argued that federal tobacco control laws enforced by the FDA take precedence over state and local laws prohibiting the sale of flavored tobacco products.

But a federal judge ruled that a March ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which upheld a similar ban in Los Angeles County, rejected those arguments.

On Nov. 29, the 9th Circuit rejected the companies' bid to block the statewide injunction pending appeal, prompting them to then petition the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene.

RJ Reynolds has separately asked the court to review the Los Angeles case.

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