Senate Bill S6704A

                                BILL NUMBER:S6704A

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the public health law, in relation to
the ban of electronic cigarettes on school grounds

PURPOSE:  This bill would expand the existing ban on smoking within
one hundred feet of a school's entrance, exits or outdoor areas, to
also include the smoking of electronic cigarettes.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Section one amends subdivision 3 of section 1399-o of the
public health law, as added by chapter 449 of the laws of 2012, by
banning the use of electronic cigarettes on school grounds. It also
clarifies the definition of "electronic cigarette" to include any
device that simulates the act of smoking but produces water vapor
instead of smoke, including but not limited to, e-cigarettes, hookah
pens, or vaping pens. Moreover, it is not required that an electronic
cigarette contain nicotine.

Section 2: Section two sets forth an effective date thirty days after
this act shall become law.

JUSTIFICATION:  Electronic cigarettes are mechanical smoking devices
that, contrary to traditional cigarettes which release smoke and
contain nicotine, provide an exhalation by the smoker of a vapor and
              

contain no nicotine. While there is debate over how much more
beneficial smoking an electronic cigarette is over a traditional
cigarette, the fact of the matter is that over the last few years the
numbers of people smoking electronic cigarettes has skyrocketed. A
2012 article in USA Today noted that the Tobacco Vapor Electronic
Cigarette Association expected electronic cigarette sales to hit 5
million units-a significant increase over the 50,000 electronic
cigarette units sold in 2008.

In recent years the Legislature has enacted legislation to ban smoking
within one hundred feet of a school's entrance, exit, or outdoor
areas. But "smoking" in the particular school-smoking-ban statute is
defined as "the burning of a lighted cigar, cigarette, pipe or any
other matter or substance which contains tobacco." Because electronic
cigarette's are not expressly covered, and more importantly because
they do not contain tobacco, they are considered, de facto,
permissible on school grounds.

Whether or not electronic cigarettes have greater health protections
than regular cigarettes (or any other type of "smoking" for that
matter) we should not be encouraging smoking of any kind-whether
through the use of smoke or vapor-to our students. This legislation
would prevent the use of electronic cigarettes in the same manner as
the current prohibition against traditional smoking on school grounds.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:  New bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:  None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after
it shall have become a law.