New bill would tax e-cigarettes to support anti-vaping campaigns

U.S. lawmakers recently introduced bipartisan and bicameral legislation that would create programs and provide resources to schools to combat the youth vaping crisis if passed.

It would be funded by a fee imposed on e-cigarette companies, according to an article on law360.com.

Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., and Pete King, R-N.Y., introduced the Providing Resources to End the Vaping Epidemic Now for Teenagers Act and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., introduced a companion bill in the Senate.

The bill would let the U.S. Food and Drug Administration charge a user fee for e-cigarette companies in order to fund programs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to educate youth about the dangers of vaping. Under the bill, states and local government agencies and nonprofits would receive grants to carry out prevention programs in schools across the country, according to the article.

“With more than 5 million children now using e-cigarettes, the youth vaping epidemic is out of control,” Durbin said in a statement, adding that the bill “builds on previous tobacco prevention strategies, helping fund preventive efforts that steer kids away from vaping and helping those already struggling with nicotine addiction.”

“To reverse this extremely disturbing trend, the bipartisan and bicameral Prevent Act will educate youth about the dangers of e-cigarette use by providing students, parents and school personnel the vital resources they need to prevent e-cigarette use on the ground,” Krishnamoorthi said in a statement. “Importantly, this legislation requires the e-cigarette companies — not taxpayers or consumers — to foot the bill.”