FDA Director to Speak at NATO Show

MINNEAPOLIS -- Mitch Zeller, the Director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, will be speaking at the 2015 NATO Show which will be held at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas on April 22nd and 23rd. The presentation by Mitch Zeller will update NATO Show attendees on the pending deeming regulations, substantially equivalent tobacco products, pre-market tobacco applications for new tobacco products, modified risk tobacco products, the continuum of risk for all kinds of tobacco products, the status of menthol in cigarettes, tobacco product standards, FDA research on possible future regulations, and the Institute of Medicine’s study on health impact of raising the legal age to purchase tobacco products.

 

The NATO Show is an excellent opportunity for tobacco retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers to learn first hand from FDA Director Mitch Zeller about the agency’s tobacco regulations and the regulatory landscape in the future. There is still time to register to attend the NATO Show, which is open to both NATO members and non-member retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers.  To register, visit www.NATOShow.com or call the NATO Show office at 770-932-3263.

 

 

With state legislatures now well into their 2015 legislative sessions, some tobacco-related bills have already been passed or died. These bills include the following:

 

In Kentucky, House Bill 132, which raises taxes on cigarettes by $1 per pack and increasing taxes on other tobacco products from 15% to 40%, failed on adjournment.  House Bill 145, prohibiting smoking indoor workplaces and within 25 feet of workplace entrances, failed on adjournment. Also, House Bill 438, defining e-cigarettes as other tobacco products for taxation purposes, failed on adjournment.

 

In Utah, House Bill 130, which increases the legal age to purchase tobacco products to age 21, died when the legislature adjourned for the year. Also, Utah House Bill 415 was signed by the governor on March 24th and requires (1) e-cigarette sellers and distributers who do not have a tobacco product license to have a new state Tax Commission license to sell or distribute electronic cigarette products, (2) on July 1, 2016, the state Health Department will require standards for labeling, nicotine content, packaging and product quality for electronic cigarette substances other than those that are sealed by the manufacturer, and (3) e-cigarettes may not be advertised as tobacco cessation devices and must be sold in a face-to-face transaction except in places where persons under 19 are prohibited without a parent or guardian, including tobacco specialty shops. 

 

A number of bills in Hawaii did not pass. House Bills 143, 144, 399, and 400 that define “premium cigar” and apply a tax of 50 cents each to each cigar (rather than current 70% of wholesale price) did not pass. House Bill 349 that equates e-cigarettes to regular cigarettes for taxation, smoking restrictions, reporting, and liability purposes did not pass. House Bill 587, which increases the age for sale or purchase of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, from 18 to 21, did not pass. House Bill 1164, which increases the OTP tax rate to 80% of the wholesale price (excluding large cigars but including electronic cigarettes), did not pass. Senate Bill 299 which establishes a 30% tax on the wholesale price of electronic smoking devices, cartridges and refills and makes it unlawful for a person to sell e-cigarette products to persons under 21 and for persons under 21 to buy e-cigarette products, did not pass.

 

In New Mexico, Senate Bill 65, which imposes an excise tax of four cents per milligram of nicotine contained in nicotine vapor products failed due to adjournment of the legislature.