NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A7493
SPONSOR: Rosenthal TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law and the general business law, in
relation to the labeling of electronic cigarette packaging
PURPOSE:
To increase public safety with regard to the use of electronic ciga-
rettes and to warn individuals who may use electronic cigarettes of
their potential to explode or catch fire.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one of the bill amends section 1399-cc of the Public Health Law
requiring all places of business wherein tobacco products, herbal ciga-
rettes, liquid nicotine, sisha or electronic cigarettes are sold or
offered for sale to comply with the provisions of section 398-f of the
General Business Law.
Section two amends the General Business Law to add a new section 398-f
requiring all electronic cigarette packages contain a warning label.
Section three provides the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
As the number of individuals, including teens, using e-cigarettes
continues to climb, more and more reports of the products exploding has
resulted in additional concerns arising over the safety of these
products when used by consumers. According to the FDA, from 2011 to
2015, e-cigarette use rose from 1.5 percent to 16 percent among high
school students and has increased among the general population as well.
Given the lack of regulations relating to e-cigarettes, their chemical
composition continues to raise safety concerns and the use of nicotine,
especially among teens, often leads to e-cigarettes use as a gateway or
supplement to traditional cigarettes. Adding to these safety concerns,
multiple individuals have been seriously injured as a result of using
e-cigarettes when they suddenly blow up.
An Idaho man was seriously injured after an e-cigarette exploded in his
mouth, scorching his skin and knocking out seven of his teeth. The man
said he was vaping before going to work when the device suddenly blew
up. The father of three was rushed to intensive care at his local hospi-
tal, where doctors had to remove chunks of plastic from his throat and
lips. Another example of the potential dangers of e-cigarettes involved
a worker at a wine store in Manhattan that suffered burns to his hand
and leg after an e-cigarette caught fire in his pocket. The man was
taken by private ambulance to a local hospital where he was admitted to
the burn unit for treatment and would require surgery.
According to the U.S. Fire Administration, the shape and construction of
e-cigarettes can make them more likely than other products with lithi-
um-ion batteries to behave like 'flaming rockets' when a battery fails.
The FDA's Center for Tobacco Products identified 137 reported incidents
of e-cigarette overheating, fires and explosions from 2009 to 2015 and
received 20 reports of e-cigarette's overheating, catching fire or
exploding in 2016. It is important to note that the adverse experience
reporting that has been received by the FDA is an underestimate of actu-
al events.
Moreover, an American Airlines flight had to be diverted and forced to
make an emergency landing after a passenger's electronic cigarette
malfunctioned and caused a fire. Similarly, Delta Air Lines reported a
delay in take off after an e-cigarette started a small fire on board the
plane. As a result, in 2016, the U.S. Department of Transportation
prohibited airline passengers and crew members from carrying battery-
powered portable electronic smoking devises in checked baggage, and from
using or charging the devices aboard aircraft.
Recently, the Navy announced that it is banning electronic cigarettes
and vaporizers from its aircraft, ships and submarines after receiving
multiple reports of the devices' batteries exploding, catching fire and
injuring sailors. Eight of the incidents recorded by the Naval Safety
Center occurred aboard ships or aircraft, and in one incident, an
aircraft had to return to base because e-cigarette batteries were creat-
ing smoke in the cargo section. Notably, in one case, a battery melted
through the pocket of a sailor in a submarine and ignited after it hit
the deck. In four other cases, the failures occurred when a service
member was actively using one of the devices, and on two of those occa-
sions, the explosion occurred in the user's mouth. Those who had devices
in their mouths suffered facial, bodily and dental injuries requiring
continued treatment.
With the number of incidents continuing to rise, it is important to
provide consumers with a warning about the potential of the products to
explode or catch fire and cause grave injury to users. This legislation
would require all e-cigarette packages contain a warning label that
explicitly warns users of the potential for the product to explode,
catch fire or overheat.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the State.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it
shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7493
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 27, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law and the general business law, in
relation to the labeling of electronic cigarette packaging
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 7 of section 1399-cc of the public health law,
2 as amended by chapter 542 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as
3 follows:
4 7. No person operating a place of business wherein tobacco products,
5 herbal cigarettes, liquid nicotine, shisha or electronic cigarettes are
6 sold or offered for sale shall sell, permit to be sold, offer for sale
7 or display for sale any tobacco product, herbal cigarettes, liquid nico-
8 tine, shisha or electronic cigarettes in any manner, unless such
9 products and cigarettes are stored for sale (a) behind a counter in an
10 area accessible only to the personnel of such business, or (b) in a
11 locked container; provided, however, such restriction shall not apply to
12 tobacco businesses, as defined in subdivision eight of section thirteen
13 hundred ninety-nine-aa of this article, and to places to which admission
14 is restricted to persons eighteen years of age or older. Provided,
15 further, that, in the case of electronic cigarettes, the packages there-
16 of shall comply with the provisions of section three hundred ninety-
17 eight-f of the general business law.
18 § 2. The general business law is amended by adding a new section 398-f
19 to read as follows:
20 § 398-f. Electronic cigarette package labeling. 1. Every package
21 containing an electronic cigarette, as defined in subdivision thirteen
22 of section thirteen hundred ninety-nine-aa of the public health law,
23 sold, offered for sale or otherwise distributed without charge within
24 this state, shall have printed thereon or attached thereto a warning
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11123-01-7
A. 7493 2
1 label. Such label shall contain the following statement: "WARNING:
2 Explosion Hazard: this product may overheat, catch fire or explode."
3 2. Any person, firm, corporation or association who violates the
4 provisions of this section shall be subject to a civil penalty of not
5 more than one thousand dollars for each such violation.
6 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
7 it shall have become a law.
