The FDA is declaring teen vaping an epidemic after reports show a 58 percent increase in just one year.

School authorities are issuing a warning ahead of this new school year. In Hillsborough County in Florida, both the sheriff and the school superintendent say the crackdown will include harsh punishments, and in some cases that means felonies.

Vapes are small enough to fit in your pocket and discrete enough to be mistaken for school supplies – some of them look just like USB drives. 25 percent of Florida high school students admit to vaping.

“It’s pretty frequent,” said one high school senior, Adam Rowan.

Rowan says he even sees it happening in class.

“There’s easy access. A lot of times it’s the cool thing to do so kids have the ability to do it and they want to do it,” said Rowan.

Similar to the ’90s fight against tobacco, the sheriff’s office and schools say they’re now up against electronic smoking.

“Put down the pen” is the new motto created by the alliance between Hillsborough authorities and the school district. They’re aiming to educate teens, parents and staff on what to look for and what it can cost.

“It’s just not worth messing up your life over smoking,” said Sheriff Chad Chronister.

“Whatever is in these vapes could be detrimental,” said one high schooler.

“It’s very easy to hide and just the puff of smoke that comes out is really all that you can see,” said Rowan.

Besides health concerns, the sheriff says they’re now seeing teens replace tobacco with THC. In those cases, it becomes a felony offense.

“I think for a lot of kids, it’s very easy to get by their parents,” said Rowan.

As a part of this ongoing education, everyone including bus drivers will be taught what to look for. The district also says they’ll be sending out emails to parents in the next few weeks telling them what vape pens can look like in all different forms.