RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — It’s difficult to say yet if electronic cigarettes are less harmful than regular fire-and-tobacco smokes, but they can save smokers hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year.

Some in the growing industry are touting the battery-powered nicotine sticks as a way for smokers to save money in the face of rising taxes and prices for tobacco cigarettes. But it may not stay that way for long as states are increasingly looking to tax e-cigarettes as they tax other tobacco products.