REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION
SUBMITTED TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
SUBMITTED BY: Travis Hopkins, City Manager
VIA: Eric Parra, Chief of Police
PREPARED BY: Kevin Johnson, Investigations Captain
Subject:
title
Adopt Ordinance No. 4342 Prohibiting the Sale and Distribution of Nitrous Oxide - Approved for introduction October 21, 2025, by a vote of 7-0
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Statement of Issue:
At the request of Council Woman Van Der Mark and Councilmen Twining and Kennedy, the Huntington Beach City Council, at its October 7, 2025, meeting, directed staff to prepare an ordinance prohibiting the sale and distribution of Nitrous Oxide within the City.
Financial Impact:
Not applicable.
Recommended Action:
recommendation
Adopt Ordinance No. 4342, "An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach, adding a New Chapter 9.94 Entitled "Prohibition on Sale or Distribution of Nitrous Oxide" to Title 9 of the Huntington Beach Municipal Code to Establish Regulations Prohibiting the Unlawful Sale or Distribution of Nitrous Oxide in the City."
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Alternative Action(s):
Do not approve the recommended action and direct staff accordingly.
Analysis:
Nitrous oxide, commonly known as "laughing gas" or "whippets," has become a growing public health and safety concern in Huntington Beach and throughout Orange County. Although nitrous oxide has legitimate medical and commercial applications, it is increasingly being misused as a recreational inhalant, creating challenges that require regulatory action beyond current state law.
Sold widely under the guise of "whipped cream chargers" or "culinary use," nitrous oxide is inexpensive, packaged in colorful and youth-oriented designs, and readily available in smoke shops, convenience stores, and online. Unlike alcohol or cannabis, there are virtually no point-ofsale restrictions, normalizing nitrous oxide as a cheap, easily accessible drug among young people.
The recreational use of nitrous oxide ...
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