Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3942, the Preventing Online Sales of E-Cigarettes to Children Act. This bill can be summarized in this way: If minors can't buy e- cigarettes in a store, they shouldn't be able to buy e-cigarettes online. Today, anyone who purchases alcohol or tobacco at a brick-and-mortar retail store is subject to age verification requirements. Online retailers of alcohol must also verify a purchaser's age to ensure the sales comply with State and Federal law. However, online retailers of e-cigarettes are exempted from verifying the age of their customers. When the PACT Act was passed in 2010, it did a great job of curbing youth smoking. Unfortunately, e-cigarettes were not in existence yet. This loophole exists at a time when youth vaping is at epidemic levels. Today, one in five high school students is using e-cigarettes. Kids can have e-cigarettes delivered right to their door without requiring an adult signature. Teen vaping rates have doubled since 2017, and over 3 million minors used e-cigarettes last year. The lack of age verification requirements is hurting kids. The Preventing Online Sales of E-Cigarettes to Children Act would require age verification upon delivery of online purchases of e- cigarettes and other vapor products. It closes the online delivery loophole and will prevent the underage purchase of e-cigarettes online. This bill has a broad coalition of support.…”