Council Committee Cracks Down on Nitrous Oxide, Kratom Sales

The City Council's Safety, Wellness, and Youth Committee voted Wednesday to ban the sale of nitrous oxide and kratom in the city.

The crackdown comes after police observed nitrous oxide and kratom products sold at smoke shops and gas stations throughout the city, with health officials linking synthetic kratom to fatal overdoses and nitrous oxide long-term abuse to nerve damage, cognitive impairments and increased DUI incidents.

The move bans the sale of nitrous oxide in the city except for authorized uses in the medical, dental and pharmacy industry, in the wholesale capacity, and for food preparation and vehicle performance.

The committee, comprised of Councilmembers Jim Perry, Chuck Conder and Sean Mill, also unanimously voted to ban the sale of kratom-based products, as kratom contains several alkaloids including potent psychoactive compound 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH).

Violations of both ordinances are punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, up to six months in jail, or a revocation of a business's tobacco retail establishment permit.

Deputy Chief Charles Payne, who gave presentations during the meeting, said police noticed energy drinks containing kratom sold on shelves next to regular energy drinks.

"Someone could go in trying to buy an energy drink and end up with a kratom product," he said during the meeting.

Councilmember Mill said he too noticed nitrous oxide products being sold in smoke shops and kratom products sold in gas stations.

"I can't believe a product so destructive we can just walk in and purchase," the councilmember said at the meeting. "What's really concerning is people can buy it with little to no oversight and it's marketed as natural, downplaying the risk."

Mill compared the effects of kratom products to opioids.

"I went out on the streets…and most homeless in the city are struggling with drug problems, and we're legally selling products that are doing the same things to your brain. This affects life for Riversiders across the board," he said.

Conder agreed, pushing for a complete ban on the sale of both products.

"Ban it period. No argument, no discussion," Conder said at the meeting. "We've gone from recreation being golf and swimming to recreation being drugs and getting behind the wheel and killing people."

While the police department recommended a ban on nitrous oxide, it offered two options for the sale of kratom: a complete ban on its sale, or regulation banning synthetic kratom products and banning marketing deemed "attractive" to children, but allowing the sale of kratom products containing less than 2 percent 7-OH and limiting sales only to those over the age of 21.

The proposed regulations mirror the regulations on kratom adopted by Riverside County in October 2025.

The committee opted for a complete ban on kratom sales, which police also recommended out of the two options.

While there were no public commenters when it came to the ban of nitrous oxide, several people called in to comment on the kratom issue – with some asking the committee to opt to regulate its sale instead of ban it outright.

Some callers drew a distinction between whole-leaf kratom, which in its natural state contains only small traces of 7-OH, and synthetic kratom products which contain higher concentrations of 7-OH.

One caller, who did not give his name but identified as a Riverside resident, said he relies on natural kratom leaf to manage his chronic pain.

"A bad car accident left me with…pain that makes life really challenging. Natural kratom leaf is the only thing that gives me a sense of normal life back," the caller said. "[With kratom] I can hang out with my family and go to work."

Allison Smith, director of government affairs for the Global Kratom Coalition, also called in to ask the committee to opt to regulate the sale of kratom.

"Regulation is possible," Smith said.

This comes after California Assembly Bill 1088, introduced in 2025 to regulate kratom statewide, stalled in the legislature and did not pass. The bill would have restricted sales to those under 21 and imposed packaging and potency limits, but it failed to reach a final Senate vote before legislative deadlines.

During the meeting, the committee also unanimously voted to create standardized background checks for the owners of specialized businesses like cannabis and tobacco shops, massage parlors and pawn shops.

By Micaela Ricaforte