Senate committee rejects bill to create Arkansas vapor-product registry after hours of testimony

Little Rock — The Senate City, County & Local Affairs Committee voted against Senate Bill 252 on Oct. 12, 2025, after more than three hours of testimony from vape-shop owners, retail representatives, public-health advocates and tobacco-control officials. The bill would have created a state registry for vapor products that mirrors the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) directory.

Sponsor Sen. Jonathan Dismain, who presented the bill, said the registry was intended to give Arkansas Tobacco Control a workable list of products so inspectors could tell at a glance whether an item on a store shelf had filed the federal premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) or otherwise was eligible for sale. "What we're doing with this bill is creating a registry for vapor products in Arkansas that is going to mirror the FDA directory today," Dismain said during his presentation.

The bill prompted sharply divided testimony. Supporters, including Steve Good, who identified himself as representing Arkansas retailers, argued a registry would improve enforcement. "The way that we can add to that enforcement is through a registry," Good said, saying tobacco-control agents otherwise face shelves of products with no easy way to check legality.

Opponents — largely vape-shop owners and…