

Call to Action! Missouri Vapers, Ask Governor Nixon to Sign SB 841, Common-Sense Ban on Sales to Minors



Businesses: Please alert your Missouri consumers they have the opportunity to help the vapor industry by contacting Governor Jay Nixon immediately and asking him to sign Senate



If your business is physically located in Missouri, please let him know that as a business owner you support this legislation and would like his support as well.



This legislation will: Businesses: Please alert your Missouri consumers they have the opportunity to help the vapor industry by contacting Governor Jay Nixon immediately and asking him to sign Senate Bill 841 If your business is physically located in Missouri, please let him know that as a business owner you support this legislation and would like his support as well.This legislation will: Prohibit minors from purchasing vapor products (like e-cigarettes)

Clarify that vapor products are not subject to the same taxation or regulation as combustible cigarettes. It is likely that Gov. Nixon is being pressured by public health advocates and organizations who do not support these potentially lifesaving products to veto what is in reality a tobacco bill. This is our opportunity to shed light on the truth about vapor products and their potential.



Vetoing the bill (what we do not want) will allow tobacco companies to solidify their hold on the market, will allow them to market inappropriately to minors, and will leave give minors access to vapor products regardless of a vape stores best intentions.



Businesses and consumers can contact Governor Nixons office at (573-751-3222) and explain the following: Senate Bill 841 prevents access to vapor products by minors. As recognized by the House and Senate, as well as the Federal Food and Drug Administration, it is important to prevent youth access to these products. Additionally, imposition of taxes on Missouri businesses will cause a dramatic loss of business to the hundreds of vapor product retailers in Missouri as more Missouri vapers purchase products online. This will create a loss of jobs and business in Missouri. While the proposed FDA regulations also propose ban on sales to minors, it could be years before the final Rule is put into place, and in the meantime, it would be perfectly legal for Missouri retailers to continue to sell vapor products to minors. Senate Bill 841 also clarifies that vapor products are subject to tax â€“ specifically Missouri state sales tax. But more importantly, this legislation also clarifies that these products are not subject to the tobacco excise tax. Vapor products are not at all like traditional tobacco products, so this provision is correct and proper.



Any attempt to tax vapor products as tobacco products would not only represent a tax increase on working-class Missourians, but also act as a barrier to those Missouri smokers who would like to avail themselves of alternatives to combustible cigarettes, a known public health scourge which kills hundreds of thousands of smokers a year.



Similarly, this bill clarifies that vapor products are not to be regulated as tobacco products under state law. Estimated by scientists and researchers to be 99% less hazardous than smoking, vapor products are nothing like traditional tobacco products. This language prevents unelected administrative agencies from regulating vapor products in the future.



Finally, remind Governor Nixon that if he vetoes this legislation, he will be allowing minors to purchase vapor products notwithstanding the super-majority of the legislature that passed legislation to the contrary.



Sincerely,



Cynthia Cabrera

Executive Director For more consumer advocacy information, please direct your customers to www.casaa.org Sincerely,Cynthia CabreraExecutive Director

