Americas

6th March 2025: US - Montana: Republican lawmaker and vape shop owner Ron Marshall has resigned from the Montana Legislature, citing corruption and favouritism towards major tobacco companies, media reports. Marshall sponsored House Bill (HB) 149 to differentiate vape and tobacco products, but claimed its progress was blocked by lobbying from tobacco companies Altria and RJ Reynolds. After his lawsuit against the two companies was dismissed, the bill failed to pass. Marshall’s resignation was also fuelled by the approval of HB 525, which he argues benefits Big Tobacco by restricting non-Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved vape products, harming small businesses. He criticised fellow Republicans, including attorney general Austin Knudsen, for supporting the bill.
6th March 2025: US - New York: Assembly Bill A6444 has been introduced. The bill would prohibit the sale of disposable e-cigarettes in New York State. If passed, it is set to take effect on 1st January 2026 and aims to reduce tobacco-related health issues and environmental waste.
6th March 2025: US - Texas: House Bill (HB) 3772 has been introduced. HB 3772 would create a state directory of e-cigarette manufacturers and their products. Manufacturers would be required to certify their e-cigarettes with the state comptroller annually, providing details about their products and paying a $2,500 fee. Manufacturers must also either have Food and Drug Administration (FDA) marketing authorisation or have submitted a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA). The comptroller would maintain a public online directory listing all approved e-cigarette products, which would be updated monthly. Retailers would be prohibited from selling e-cigarettes not included in this directory.
4th March 2025: US - Federal: US Senate Democratic whip Dick Durbin, along with several Senate Democratic colleagues, has introduced the End Tobacco Loopholes Act to close tax-code loopholes on tobacco products. The proposed legislation would impose a federal tax on e-cigarettes, aligning with policies in 30 states, while also updating the federal cigarette tax rate for the first time in over 15 years. Additionally, it seeks to standardise tax rates across all tobacco products to prevent industry exploitation. Lawmakers emphasise that raising tobacco prices is the most effective strategy to curb consumption, especially among children. In 2023, legislators introduced the Tobacco Tax Equity Act of 2023, a bill identical to the newly proposed End Tobacco Loopholes Act, but it failed to pass at the federal level.
28th February 2025: US - Nebraska: This week the General Affairs Committee considered two proposals aimed at limiting youth access to vaping products. Legislature Bill (LB) 285 would ban the sale of flavoured e-cigarettes in Nebraska, except for tobacco and menthol flavours. LB 688 would ban advertising of all e-cigarettes in the state. According to the main sponsor of the bills, the intent of both proposals is to prioritise the public health of Nebraska’s young people by limiting their access to potentially harmful products.
27th February 2025: US - Alaska: Recent data from the official Alaska Youth Risk Behavior Survey indicates a decline in vaping and e-cigarette use among high school students in the state. In 2019, 26% of Alaskan high schoolers reported using vapes within the previous 30 days. By 2023, that percentage had decreased notably to approximately 17%. Christy Knight, head of the tobacco programme of the state’s Division of Public Health, said: “We did see an improvement in perceptions of harm in 2023, which demonstrates that our education is indeed working, and that teens are more aware of how these products can harm their health.”
27th February 2025: US - Kentucky: On 21st February, an injunction was filed with the Sixth Circuit Court to halt the enforcement of state House Bill (HB) 11, press reports. This law regulates vaping products by banning the sale of “unauthorized” e-cigarettes, aligning its definitions with US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards. The plaintiffs argue that HB 11 is pre-empted by the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, asserting that Kentucky is attempting to usurp regulatory authority that belongs to the FDA. They claim the law causes irreparable harm to wholesalers and retailers by forcing the removal of popular products under threat of penalties.
26th February 2025: US - Federal: Donald Trump’s administration is planning to impose new levies on Chinese-built ships that arrive at US ports, regardless of whether the ship is Chinese-owned or what cargo it carries. While not directly applied to imports themselves, such levies would likely be passed on by ship owners to importers and then to consumers, resulting in higher retail prices. Around 80% of the US’s foreign trade by weight is imported by sea, according to a New York Times report, and around 20% of container ships using these ports are Chinese-made. On the trans-Pacific routes by which products such as e-cigarettes are exported from China to the US, that proportion is far higher.
26th February 2025: US - Federal: In response to intensified scrutiny and enforcement, a Reuters investigation indicates that some e-cigarette manufacturers have restructured their US operations, including relocating their activities to offshore locations. For example, the report indicates that a Chinese company shifted its US brand to a British Virgin Islands-based entity. In response, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said: “The FDA is aware of, and closely monitoring, instances in which companies attempt to change the labeling of illegally marketed products, or the structure of their business, to avoid detection”.
25th February 2025: Colombia: The Chamber of Representatives (lower house of the parliament) has approved bill 228/2024 in a second debate. The bill proposes a tax of COP2,000 ($0.49) per ml on vaping products, regardless of their nicotine content. The initiative, referred to as a “health tax”, aims to reduce the consumption of these products nationwide. The bill now advances to a third debate in the Senate. In parallel, bill 308/2023, which proposes a tax amounting to COP295 ($0.07) per ml is also still under consideration. In both cases, an additional 10% tax on the retail price would apply.
21st February 2025: US - New York: New York attorney general Letitia James has filed a lawsuit against 13 major vape manufacturers, distributors and retailers for illegally marketing and selling flavoured disposable e-cigarettes, such as Puff Bar and Elf Bar, to under-21s. An investigation by the Office of the Attorney General found these companies use deceptive tactics, including misleading safety claims, illegal shipments to New York and violations of health regulations. The lawsuit seeks hundreds of millions of dollars in penalties for violations of local, state and federal laws, along with damages and restitution for the public health impact. It also demands the recovery of profits from illegal sales and the creation of a fund to combat youth vaping in New York.
19th February 2025: Chile: The developing decree of law 21,642 has been published in the country’s official journal today. The decree and the law will both enter into force three months from now, on 19th May 2025. This means that from that date, e-cigarettes will no longer be considered a pharmaceutical product in Chile, and will be subject to a comprehensive regulatory regime. The decree sets out the specific requirements for the labelling and health warning for e-cigarettes and tobacco products.

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