LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan Governor Rick Snyder (R) vetoed three bills relating to electronic cigarettes, saying the measures do not go far enough to regulate the devices.
House Bill 4997, Senate Bills 667 and 668--sponsored by State Representative Rick Outman (R), former State Senator Glenn Anderson (D) and State Sen. Rick Jones (R), respectively--would have excluded alternative nicotine products including e-cigarettes from the definition of tobacco products and prohibit them from being regulated as tobacco products under Michigan law.
"We need to make sure that e-cigarettes and other nicotine-containing devices are regulated in the best interest of public health," Snyder said. "It's important that these devices be treated like tobacco products and help people become aware of the dangers e-cigarettes pose."
The legislation would have gone against the position taken by 40 state attorneys general, including Michigan's Bill Schuette, who believe that the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) should regulate e-cigarettes pursuant to its tobacco product authority.
Snyder, in his veto letter, said he believes the preferred way to ensure that e-cigarettes are regulated in the interest of public health is to revise the existing definition of a tobacco product to make clear that e-cigarettes and other novel nicotine-containing vapor products are tobacco products and should be subject to any restrictions generally applied to tobacco products under the Youth Tobacco Act, including the minimum age law.
Medical community leaders said they support the governor's actions.
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