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. ### ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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