State lawmakers on Tuesday killed a plan to raise the legal smoking age to 21.

Stores that sell cigarettes and e-cigarettes stood to lose millions in sales by raising the age and fought to keep the age at 18.

State lawmakers refused to bring the issue up for a vote Tuesday morning.

Five states have raised the smoking age to 21. So have dozens of cities, including New York, Albany, Boston and Chicago.

If Connecticut did raise the age, the state stood to lose $5 million in sales taxes in the first year.

Health groups are disappointed and hope to resurrect the idea somewhere in the new state budget. But they did get one victory in the advancement of a bill that would ban people from buying e-cigarettes online. If it passes, a potential e-cigarette buyer would have to go to a store and prove they're 18.