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Senate committee advances tobacco and e-cigarette bill; nicotine cap raised to 70 mg, delivery and product exceptions added
Summary
The committee adopted a committee substitute for Senate Bill 24 that keeps cigars and pipe tobacco outside the new licensing/tax structure, removes an ID-to-carrier delivery requirement, and raises a vape-product nicotine cap from 50 mg to 70 mg; the CS was reported from committee with individual recommendations and eight fiscal notes.
Juneau, Alaska — The Senate Labor and Commerce Committee on Wednesday advanced a committee substitute for Senate Bill 24, a measure addressing tobacco, nicotine, e-cigarette age and e-cigarette taxation. The substitute makes three substantive changes: it preserves the status quo for cigars and pipe tobacco, removes a provision requiring recipients to provide identification to a carrier before delivery, and raises a proposed cap on nicotine content in vape products from 50 milligrams to 70 milligrams.
Conrad Jackson, staff to Committee Chair Bjorkman, told members the committee substitute retains the current treatment of cigars and pipe tobacco so those products would not be folded into the bill’s licensing and tax scheme. Jackson said the ID-to-carrier requirement on page 9 lines 14–19 of the prior draft was deleted in the CS. He also explained the nicotine cap change on page 15 from 50 mg to 70 mg, saying lawmakers feared an overly low cap could create a market for unregulated products: "we may actually create a black market for those products from maybe less reputable manufacturers," he said.
Senator Dunbar questioned why cigar and pipe tobacco were excluded if the policy aim is to offset health costs through taxation. Chair Bjorkman and other members said the committee’s focus for this bill is products more commonly used by young people (e-cigarettes and vapes), and they viewed the change as a policy decision for the full legislature.
Senator Tom Merrick moved to report the committee substitute for SB 24 from committee with individual recommendations and eight attached fiscal notes; no member objected and the CS was reported from committee. The transcript records the committee adopting the CS as the working document and later reporting it by unanimous consent; no roll-call vote appears in the record.
The CS advances a higher nicotine cap while preserving exceptions for certain tobacco products and removing a carrier-ID requirement; those changes will be reflected in the committee’s report to the Senate along with eight fiscal notes.
