Temecula Lawmaker Seeks to Stamp out Hurdles to Smoking E-Cigs

RIVERSIDE, CA - Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Temecula, is slated Thursday to introduce legislation that would undo regulations that treat electronic cigarettes like tobacco products, freeing up sales and marketing of the e-cigs. Hunter's Cigarette Smoking Reduction & Electronic Vapor Alternatives Act would unwind the Obama administration's "Deeming Rule," which went into effect last summer and puts "vaping" on par with smoking.

Vaping involves the use of battery-operated products that resemble cigarettes and permit users to inhale and exhale water vapor. There's diluted nicotine in the vaporizers, which proponents argue gradually help tobacco addicts kick the habit, while opponents counter that the vaporizers are just as addictive and come with their own hazards.

According to Hunter's office, the congressman believes vaping cannot be justifiably placed under the stringent rules that bear on smoking under the federal Tobacco Control Act.

"Vaping is widely recognized as a life-saving alternative to traditional tobacco products," according to a statement released by his office.

Large tobacco manufacturers produce e-cigarettes, alongside smaller companies, some of whom have the devices assembled and imported from China.

Reps. Tom Cole, R-OK, and Sanford Bishop, D-GA, have submitted a bill to eliminate a number of regulations that drive up the cost of e-cigarettes. However, Hunter's bill would go much farther and dovetail with President Donald Trump's general anti-regulation bent, the congressman's office said.

In 2012, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors imposed prohibitions on the use of e-cigarettes, directing that no employee or visitor to county facilities utilize the products inside or in the immediate vicinity of the buildings.

A Department of Human Resources manager at the time cited the need for the policy to prevent "second-hand nicotine exposure."

– By City News Service / Image via Pixabay