BILL NUMBER:  S5590

 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
cigarettes 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
cigarettes, 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 hospital, 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
lithium-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 actual 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
creating 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 occasions, 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.