Tag: regulation

  • January 1: New Vape Retailer Rules in Texas Begin

    January 1: New Vape Retailer Rules in Texas Begin

    A Forever Vapes store in Pearland, TX, USA. (Credit: JHVEPhoto)

    Beginning Jan. 1, 2024, it will be a crime in Texas to market, advertise, sell or cause to be sold an e-cigarette product in certain containers that are designed to appeal to minors.

    “It is illegal to sale e-cigarettes to minors — these products are dangerous and most contain nicotine, heavy metals and cancer-causing materials — yet these products are intentionally designed to attract minors,” Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar said. “Texas has taken action to deal with this kind of deceptive marketing and I greatly appreciate the partnership with retailers across this state to help us protect one of our most vital resources: our children.”

    House Bill 4758 states any person commits a Class B misdemeanor that can lead to civil and criminal penalties if they market, advertise, sell or cause to be sold an e-cigarette product and the product’s container meets any of the following criteria: 

    • depicts a cartoon-like fictional character that mimics a character primarily aimed at entertaining minors;
    • imitates or mimics trademarks or trade dress of products that are or have been primarily marketed to minors;
    • includes a symbol that is primarily used to market products to minors;
    • includes an image of a celebrity; or
    • includes an image that resembles a food product, including candy or juice.

    A violation can result in a Class B misdemeanor conviction punishable by up to 180 days in jail, a fine up to $2,000, or both. E-cigarette retailers also can face civil penalties up to $3,000 and a permit suspension or revocation for repeat violations.

    The Comptroller’s office and partnering agencies perform inspections for signage and employee compliance concerning the sale, possession and use of cigarettes, e-cigarettes and tobacco products, according to a press release.

  • UK Labour Party Wants ‘Prescription-Only’ Vapes

    UK Labour Party Wants ‘Prescription-Only’ Vapes

    Credit: IR Stone

    The British Labour Party told media representatives it may implement a prescription-only policy for vaping products if they win the upcoming general election, which must take place by January 2025.

    The Labour Party has been consistently leading in polls for the past two years.

    Wes Streeting, shadow health secretary for the Labour Party and potential choice for health secretary if the party gains a majority in Parliament, is closely monitoring Australia’s recent decision to regulate vaping as a prescription product.

    Streeting believes that this policy is partly based on evidence from Australia showing that vaping can lead to smoking.

    He also criticizes the vaping industry for promoting itself as a helpful tool for quitting smoking while simultaneously addicting young people to nicotine.

    In regards to the industry’s marketing tactics, Streeting says, “We will take strong measures against targeting children, but I also want the vaping industry to return to its initial purpose as a legitimate method for quitting smoking.”

  • UKVIA Petitions Against Possible ‘One-Use’ Vape Ban

    UKVIA Petitions Against Possible ‘One-Use’ Vape Ban

    The U.K. Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) has called on smokers, vapers and the wider industry to join a national petition urging the government against banning disposable vapes and flavors.

    The petition highlights the potential public health consequences of “excessive and counterproductive legislation” that reduces the effectiveness of vaping as a stop-smoking tool, according to the UKVIA. Blocking access to flavors and disposables could prevent adult smokers from switching from combustible cigarettes, according to the organization.

    The UKVIA is directly engaging with its own members, advocacy groups and online communities to encourage consumers to pledge their support to the petition. The UKVIA is also running a major social media campaign to maximize sign-ups and sharing stories from ex-smokers who have switched to vaping.

    “The prospect of heavy restrictions or bans on disposables or vape flavors, as being considered as part of the ongoing government consultation, could be the biggest health setback this century and risks undermining years of smoke-free progress,” said John Dunne, director general of the UKVIA, in a statement.

    “Under no circumstances should these products end up in the hands of minors, and there is no doubt that preventing youth access to vaping is critical, but this cannot be achieved by sacrificing the stop smoking potential of vaping for adult smokers. The voice of the vaper has gone largely unheard around the government’s consultation, yet they could be the victims of any punitive measures introduced. Therefore, we have created this petition to give a platform to the millions of adult vapers who have quit with the help of disposables and flavors—it is critical that vapers nationwide now come together to collectively warn the government against prohibitive and harmful legislation.”

    The new petition was created as part of an ongoing UKVIA campaign to “Save Vaping, Save Lives,” which has also included equipping the association’s members with information to encourage and mobilize vapers to respond to the government’s youth vaping consultation.

  • North Carolina Gets $7.8 Million More From Juul Labs

    North Carolina Gets $7.8 Million More From Juul Labs

    Credit: Adobe

    North Carolina will receive an additional $7.8 million from Juul as part of his first-in-the-nation agreement to hold the e-cigarette maker accountable for its role in marketing and selling e-cigarettes to young people.

    In all, the state will receive $47.8 million, said Attorney General Josh Stein in a release. North Carolina has settled its original lawsuit with Juul Labs for $40 million. 

    “The vaping epidemic is far from over, and these additional funds will help us keep more kids healthy,” said Stein. “Vaping is dangerous to kids’ health, and we must continue to do everything in our power to keep them nicotine-free.”

    Stein was the first attorney general in the nation to file a suit against Juul Labs for allegedly sparking a vaping epidemic among teenagers.

    His agreement required the company to make far-reaching changes to how Juul Labs conducts business, including not marketing to people under 21, not using social media advertising, and verifying the ages of people who buy its products.

    The money from the settlement is being used by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to prevent e-cigarette addiction, help those who are addicted quit, and fund important e-cigarette research.

    As part of Attorney General Stein’s agreement, Juul Labs must also make public a large number of documents it produced in the lawsuit.

    The first batch of documents from that document depository will be available through a partnership between the University of North Carolina and the University of California, San Francisco in early 2024.

    The documents reportedly will shed light on Juul’s marketing and research and will help prevent other companies from using the same playbook.

  • Rumors of U.K. Dropping Generational Tobacco Ban

    Rumors of U.K. Dropping Generational Tobacco Ban

    Image: methaphum

    The U.K. government may be backtracking on its plans to implement a generational tobacco ban, reports Tobacco Insider. According to the website, Britain may settle instead for raising the legal smoking age from 18 to 21.

    Under the proposed legislation, children who turn 14 or younger in 2023 would never be able to legally purchase a cigarette. A public consultation on the plans closed Dec. 6.

    Tobacco companies have reportedly been engaging heavily with lawmakers. Earlier this month, Philip Morris International held roundtable events with members of parliament as part of its efforts to ensure that heated-tobacco products are exempt from any future smoking ban.

    BAT was reportedly also scheduled to hold a private event on the plans to phase out smoking.

    Many libertarian Members of Parliament are said to dislike the idea of government limiting people’s choices.

    In November, New Zealand and Malaysia scrapped plans for similar generational tobacco bans.

  • San Francisco Files Lawsuits Against 3 Vapor Makers

    San Francisco Files Lawsuits Against 3 Vapor Makers

    San Francisco City Hall (Credit: Alonso Reyes)

    A new lawsuit filed by San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu’s office accuses three online retailers, The Finest E-Liquid, the Vape Society and DaSmokey, of illegally selling flavored vape products in the city.

    According to a complaint filed at San Francisco Superior Court Tuesday, city investigators purchased products from the three sellers that included a container of “The Finest Vanilla Almond Custard e-liquid,” a disposable vape called “Flum Pebble 6000 Puff, Matcha flavor” and packages of “Apple Pearadise” and “Straw Melon Sour Belts” e-liquid, among others.

    Moreover, the city alleges that the companies violated a state regulation, codified in California’s Stop Tobacco Access to Kids Enforcement (STAKE) Act, that requires online sellers to call the purchaser before shipping tobacco products and use certain language on the package—both safeguards intended to prevent minors from buying the products online.

    “We are bringing our lawsuit to send a clear message to tobacco retailers that selling their products will not be tolerated in San Francisco,” Chiu said. “We’re bringing this lawsuit to protect the public, especially youth, from the health risks of tobacco products.”

    Sales of flavored tobacco products have been banned in San Francisco since 2018, when voters approved Proposition E, which prohibited the sale of such products in response to the rising popularity of youth vaping.

    In 2019, the Board of Supervisors unanimously passed a ban on the sales of most electronic cigarettes in the city over the protests of Juul Labs, which was then headquartered in San Francisco and a major producer of vapes.

    That same year, Juul sponsored a ballot measure that would have reauthorized the sale of e-cigarettes—but it was overwhelmingly defeated.

    Now, Chiu’s office believes that the three online sellers are flouting bans and regulations of e-cigarette products by continuing to ship flavored vaping supplies to buyers in San Francisco.

    The alleged sales are happening despite broad restrictions on flavored vape products both locally and elsewhere, according to media reports. The websites gave no indication that the products could not be shipped to San Francisco and the products were shipped in short order to an address in the city, the complaint states.

  • Australia Extends Graphic Warnings to Vape Devices

    Australia Extends Graphic Warnings to Vape Devices

    Potential new graphic health warnings as envisioned by Australia’s Department of Health and Aged Care

    Australia will extend the requirement for manufacturers to print graphic health warnings on tobacco products to e-cigarettes, according to reports by CityNews and News. Manufacturers have until April 1, 2024, to roll out “repulsive” new health warnings on cigarette and vape packets. Retailers will be given a further three months to update their stock as new warning labels are gradually rolled out.

    On Dec. 7, the country’s federal parliament passed a law with measures to discourage smoking and vaping. Among other provisions, the legislation updates the health warnings on cigarette packages, standardizes the design and appearance of cigarette filters and applies tobacco advertising restrictions to vapor products.

    Earlier, Australia had announced a ban on single-use vapes that will take effect at the start of 2024. Starting in March, it will also be illegal to import or supply vapes that don’t comply with standards from the medical regulator. Doctors and nurses would still be able to prescribe therapeutic vapes as a tool to help smokers quit.

    Health Minister Mark Butler said the new smoking laws would save lives.

    “Tobacco has caused immeasurable harm and cost us countless lives in this country,” he told parliament. “We can’t stand by and allow another generation of people to be lured into addiction and suffer the enormous health, economic and social consequences.”

    About 20 percent of Australian 18-year-olds to 24-year-olds vape while about one in seven 14-year-olds to 17-year-olds use the product.

  • Study Finds Young Kiwis Support Generational Ban

    Study Finds Young Kiwis Support Generational Ban

    Image: Nikolay

    Most young New Zealanders support the law to progressively ban smoking, which was recently abandoned, reports RZN, citing the results of an international study.

    The new coalition government plans to repeal changes to the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Act that would have barred the sale of cigarettes to anyone born after 2009, among other measures.

    A Canadian-based international study shows 79 percent of New Zealanders aged 16 to 29 favored the ban.

    A similar share supported a reduction in the number of shops which could sell tobacco, while 68 percent wanted manufacturers to have to take nicotine out of cigarettes.

    The International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project investigates attitudes to smoking across several countries. The most recent research was supposed to provide a baseline for New Zealand before the law came into effect.

    “Our overseas colleagues are incredibly disappointed and devastated as we are because the tobacco research world has been really looking to New Zealand,” said co-author Jude Ball from Otago University.

    By contrast, the Coalition of Asia Pacific Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) expressed its support for the decision to repeal the generational tobacco ban.

    “CAPHRA applauds the government’s decision to prioritize harm reduction strategies,” said the group’s executive coordinator, Nancy Loucas. “We believe that vaping and other harm reduction tools can play a significant role in helping smokers quit, and we are pleased to see the government recognizing this.”

    The organization said it also shares the government’s concerns about the potential for a black market to develop if the sale of tobacco is overly restricted. 

    “A regulated market is always preferable to an unregulated one, where product safety cannot be guaranteed,” Loucas added.

     

  • Michigan Bill Seeks to Ban Flavored Vaping Products

    Michigan Bill Seeks to Ban Flavored Vaping Products

    Credit: Spirit of America

    The U.S. Food & Drug Administration has not yet officially banned flavors in vaping and other tobacco products. Now, states are working towards banning the controversial products themselves. Michigan is next on the list.

    Last month, S.B. 649 was introduced in the Michigan Senate. The bill calls for the ban of the sales of flavored vaping and other tobacco products, defined as any product that has or is marketed as having a characterizing flavor other than tobacco.

    The bill would ban the sale of products packaged in ways that “indicate, explicitly or implicitly, that the nicotine or tobacco product has characterizing flavor.”

    That bill would not exempt flavored cigars, though it does carve out an exemption for flavored hookah tobacco intended for on-site consumption.

    If passed, retailers caught violating the rule would be subject to the following fines:

    • First violation within 36 months: a fine of up to $1,500
    • Second violation within 36 months: a fine of $2,000 and a 30-day suspension of a license
    • Third violation within 36 months: a fine of $2,500 and a one-year suspension of a license
    • Fourth violation within 36 months: a fine of $3,000 and a revocation of a license

    If the bill passes, a new fund would be created for compliance checks.

    California and Massachusetts are the only two states with flavored tobacco bans.

    According to a study by the New England Convenience Store and Energy Marketers Association, excise tax lost income in Massachusetts from selling fewer menthol cigarettes alone amounted to $62 million in the first six months of the ban. No specific figures were given for electronic nicotine delivery systems in the release.

  • FDA Files Civil Money Action Against 25 Retailers

    FDA Files Civil Money Action Against 25 Retailers

    Credit: FDA

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced it has filed civil money penalty (CMP) complaints against 25 brick-and-mortar and online retailers for selling unauthorized Elf Bar, EB Design and other e-cigarette products.

    In a press note, the FDA stated that it had previously warned each retailer in the form of a warning letter to stop selling unauthorized tobacco products. During follow-up inspections, the agency observed the retailers had not corrected the violations, resulting in civil money penalty actions. 

    The complaints seek the maximum civil money penalty of $19,192 for a single violation from each retailer. The retailers can pay the penalty, enter into a settlement agreement based on mitigation factors, request an extension of time to file an answer to the complaint, or file an answer and request a hearing.

    Retailers that do not take action within 30 days after receiving the complaint risk a default order imposing the full penalty amount.  

    Today’s actions bring the total number of CMPs filed against retailers for the sale of unauthorized e-cigarettes up to 67.

    Previously, in September, and then again in November, FDA sought CMPs for similar amounts against 42 brick-and-mortar retailers across 18 states for the sale of unauthorized Elf Bar products. Today’s actions include retailers from 14 states and, for the first time, include cases against online retailers.