HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.R. NO.

67

THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021

H.D. 1

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

REQUESTING THE UNITED STATES FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION TO PROMOTE TRANSPARENCY AND ENFORCEMENT BY PROVIDING INDIVIDUAL PREMARKET TOBACCO PRODUCT APPLICATION APPLICANT INFORMATION OF HAWAII SELLERS TO THE DEPARTMENT OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT PURPOSES.

 

 

 


     WHEREAS, according to a 2020 joint study by the United States Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there are an estimated 3,600,000 youth who currently use e-cigarettes, or electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS); and

 

     WHEREAS, according to the Hawaii Youth Risk Survey, commissioned by the Department of Health, Hawaii high school students are twice as likely as youth nationally to vape; and

 

     WHEREAS, the 2017 Hawaii Youth Tobacco Survey found that Hawaii has the highest rate of e-cigarette use among middle school students and the second highest rate among high school students in the United States; and

 

     WHEREAS, the marketing of e-cigarettes and ENDS products aggressively targets vulnerable youth users with the introduction of flavored e-cigarettes and ENDS products, as well as advertisements in social media employing celebrities and influencers, which ultimately promote the illegal sale and use of e-cigarettes and ENDS products by underage users; and

 

     WHEREAS, the United States Surgeon General, United States Department of Health and Human Services, and CDC warns that the use of e-cigarettes and ENDS products are unsafe due to the highly addictive nature of nicotine, harm to the developing adolescent brain, carcinogens and other toxins present in the aerosol inhaled, and potentially lethal toxins if the content of refill cartridges are consumed; and

     WHEREAS, the passage of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, in December 2020 amended the Jenkins Act, as previously amended by the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act, to mandate that any delivery sale of ENDS will require an adult's signature upon delivery, ostensibly increasing the difficulty for minors to illegally obtain ENDS; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Food and Drug Administration required any seller and manufacturer of new tobacco products, including e‑cigarettes and ENDS products, to submit a Premarket Tobacco Product Application (PTPA) by September 9, 2020; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Food and Drug Administration has seen an influx of PTPAs with receipt of 14,751 applications in August and September 2019 alone; and

 

     WHEREAS, the identities of Hawaii sellers of e-cigarettes and ENDS products who have pending or approved PTPAs in compliance with the Food and Drug Administration requirements are currently unknown for enforcement purposes; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2021, that the United States Food and Drug Administration is requested to promote transparency and enforcement by immediately providing individual Premarket Tobacco Product Application applicant information of Hawaii sellers to the Department of the Attorney General for law enforcement purposes; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of the Attorney General is urged to identify those Hawaii sellers who do not have a pending or approved Premarket Tobacco Product Application in compliance with the United States Food and Drug Administration requirements and transmit such information to the United States Food and Drug Administration for enforcement purposes; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of the Attorney General is requested to submit a comprehensive report of actions taken pursuant to this measure to the Legislature no later than sixty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2022; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Commissioner of the United States Food and Drug Administration, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Governor, Attorney General, and Director of Health.

Report Title: 

Premarket Tobacco Product Application; E-cigarettes; Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems