Meehan's previous effort in the area:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d106:h.r.02914:
No person shall make a sale of tobacco products to an individual under
the age of 18 using the Internet or the Postal Service or other
carrier and no person shall ship in interstate commerce tobacco
products which have been so sold.
---
http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/ma05_meehan/NR121001InternetTobacco.html
Meehan Introduces Bill to Prevent Sale of Tobacco to Minors on the
Internet
DECEMBER 10, 2001
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Representative Marty Meehan (D-MA) today
introduced legislation, The Tobacco Free Internet for Kids Act (H.R.
2914) to prohibit and prevent the Internet sale of tobacco products to
minors. A study on adolescent Internet cigarette purchases contained
in the latest issue of the Journal of Tobacco Control highlights the
need for Meehans legislation.
According to a study released today in the Journal of Tobacco Control
titled, Are adolescents attempting to buy cigarettes on the Internet?
by Jennifer B. Unger, Louise Ann Rohrbach, and Kurt M. Ribisi, minors
can easily purchase cigarettes from Internet vendors. A survey of
minors who purchased cigarettes from Internet vendors revealed that
fewer than 25 percent of these vendors asked minors for identification
or refused to sell them cigarettes in the past month. 94 percent of
these minors reported that it would be easy or very easy for them to
obtain a cigarette through the Internet.
Furthermore, the Journal of Tobacco Control study suggested that the
Internet may become a source of cigarettes for youth as retail access
becomes increasingly difficult for youth while internet tobacco sales
remain largely unregulated. The study also cites sting operations
conducted by at least 15 states which found that children as young as
9 years old were easily able to purchase tobacco products from
Internet vendors. Working with the office of the Attorney General of
Massachusetts, Meehan conducted his own Internet tobacco sting
operation in August of 1999, finding that none of 26 surveyed Internet
tobacco web-sites asked minors for proof of age.
The Internet is becoming a haven for one-stop, tax-free, no-hassle
cigarette purchases by minors, said Meehan. With the point and click
of a mouse, young people can have cigarettes ferried to their front
doors. We need federal legislation to prevent the Internet from
becoming the loophole that unravels state laws forbidding and
deterring cigarette purchases by minors.
Meehans bill is a more stringent version of the legislation he
proposed in the prior Congress aimed at preventing tobacco sales to
minors through the Internet. Meehans Tobacco Free Internet for Kids
Act outlaws Internet tobacco sales to minors and requires Internet
tobacco vendors to verify the purchasers identity and age prior to
shipping tobacco products. The bill also mandates placement of a clear
and conspicuous label on shipped tobacco packages indicating their
contents and highlighting the federal ban on sales to minors.
Moreover, the bill requires Internet tobacco vendors to employ methods
of shipping requiring the purchaser to sign for delivery and show
photo identification and to post prominent health warning labels and
warning labels about the illegality of sales to minors on tobacco
product webpages.
The bill empowers not only federal authorities to enforce its
provisions but also state Attorneys General - who may seek injunctive
relief in Federal court to prevent violations. Upon enactment, the
Federal Trade Commission would have 90 days to promulgate rules and
regulations for carrying out the Tobacco Free Internet for Kids Act.
Meehan has long served as the Democratic Co-Chair of the bipartisan
Congressional Task Force on Tobacco and Health. In December of 1994,
he submitted a 111-page prosecution memorandum to the U.S. Department
of Justice, outlining numerous federal crimes Big Tobacco and its
executives may have committed. The Justice Department subsequently
filed a civil suit against tobacco giants, charging them with
conspiracy and fraud for collaborating to mislead the public about the
dangers of smoking. In September of 2000, the American Heart
Association presented Meehan with its National Public Service Award in
recognition of his longstanding commitment to tobacco control.
Congressman Marty Meehan represents the 5th District of Massachusetts.
He resides in Lowell.
###
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Received on Dec 11 2001
Intro
