Committee schedules review of enforcement on online vape sales after pilot investigator grant

A House committee said it will meet May 8 at 9 a.m. in Room 10 to review how the Department of Liquor and Lottery and the Attorney General's Office are identifying businesses that sell vaping products online into Vermont, and to assess a pilot investigator program that targeted out-of-state sellers.

A committee member told members the pilot program received a grant of about $800,000 to support a part-time investigator who made undercover purchases online; investigative findings were then referred to the Attorney General for enforcement. "They could provide an investigator," the member said, describing the chain from buys to AG prosecution.

Members said enforcement — not new regulation of Vermont businesses — is the first priority. "It's not more regulation that needs to be done to Vermont businesses. It's more...we need to enforce the laws that we already have on the books," the committee member said, arguing that the supply of products to minors appears to come primarily from outside the state.

The committee framed the May 8 meeting as a fact-finding step before considering additional regulatory measures on in-state businesses. No formal votes or motions were recorded in the transcript; the item was listed as a topic for the next meeting with Human Services and partner agencies, and committee members discussed possible next steps including funding a dedicated investigator within the committee's unit if outside enforcement is not available or sufficient.

The committee also linked the topic to broader public-health discussions about youth access to vaping products and said it will report back after the scheduled meeting with Human Services and the agency partners.