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79R3908 MSE-D
By: Gallego H.B. No. 1976
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to fire safety standards for cigarettes; providing civil
penalties.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter H, Chapter 161, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 161.091 to read as follows:
Sec. 161.091. FIRE SAFETY STANDARDS. (a) In this section:
(1) "Bonded agent" has the meaning assigned by Section
154.001 or 155.001, Tax Code, as applicable.
(2) "Executive commissioner" means the executive
commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission.
(b) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules relating
to fire safety standards for cigarettes offered for sale in this
state requiring that:
(1) a cigarette, if ignited, will stop burning within
a period established by rule if the cigarette is not smoked during
that period; and
(2) a cigarette meets performance standards
prescribed by the department to limit the risk that the cigarette
will ignite upholstered furniture, mattresses, or other household
furnishings.
(c) In adopting rules under Subsection (b), the executive
commissioner may consider whether a cigarette manufactured in
accordance with the rules may reasonably result in an increased
health risk to a consumer.
(d) The department, with the assistance of local law
enforcement agencies, shall administer this section. The
department may enter into an interagency contract with the
comptroller under Section 161.088(c) to facilitate enforcement of
this section.
(e) A person may not sell or give or direct the sale or gift
of a cigarette unless the manufacturer of the cigarette has
certified to the department and to the attorney general that the
cigarette meets the performance standards adopted by the executive
commissioner under Subsection (b). The certifying manufacturer
shall provide a copy of the manufacturer's certification to all
wholesalers and bonded agents. The executive commissioner shall
adopt rules prescribing standards for the notification of retailers
as to which cigarettes have been certified by the manufacturer
under this section.
(f) A wholesaler who knowingly sells cigarettes wholesale
in violation of Subsection (e) is subject to a civil penalty not to
exceed $10,000 for each sale in violation of Subsection (e).
(g) A retailer who knowingly sells cigarettes in violation
of Subsection (e) is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed:
(1) $500 for each sale if the total number of
cigarettes in the sale is less than 1,000 cigarettes; or
(2) $1,000 for each sale if the total number of
cigarettes in the sale is 1,000 or more.
(h) A manufacturer who knowingly makes a false
certification under Subsection (e) is subject to a civil penalty
not to exceed $10,000 for each false certification.
(i) A civil penalty under this section may be collected in a
suit by the attorney general.
(j) This section does not apply to a person selling
cigarettes that have not been certified by the manufacturer under
Subsection (e) if the cigarettes are or will be stamped for sale in
another state or are packaged for sale outside the United States.
(k) Proceeds from the assessment of civil penalties under
this section shall be deposited to the credit of the cigarette fire
safety account. The cigarette fire safety account is an account in
the general revenue fund. Money in the account may be used only by
the department for:
(1) making grants to fund fire safety and education
programs; and
(2) administering this section.
SECTION 2. (a) The executive commissioner of the Health and
Human Services Commission shall adopt rules relating to cigarette
fire safety standards as required by Section 161.091(b), Health and
Safety Code, as added by this Act, not later than March 1, 2006.
(b) The fire safety standards adopted by the executive
commissioner under Section 161.091(b), Health and Safety Code, as
added by this Act, shall take effect on the earliest practicable
date that a manufacturer of cigarettes is able to comply with the
standards, provided that that date is not later than six months
after the date the executive commissioner adopts the standards.
(c) Sections 161.091(e), (f), and (g), Health and Safety
Code, as added by this Act, apply only to the sale of cigarettes
beginning on or after the 30th day after the date the fire safety
standards take effect in accordance with Subsection (b) of this
section.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.