Page 20 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – Friday, December 6, 2019 THE HOUSE AND SENATE Beacon Hill Roll Call records the votes of local senators and representatives from recent debate on legislation banning the sale of flavored vaping and tobacco products. There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. Gov. Charlie Baker signed into law a bill that makes Massachusetts the first state to ban the sale of flavored vaping and tobacco products—including mint and menthol cigarettes. The measure also imposes a 75 percent excise tax on e-cigarettes. Another provision requires commercial health insurers and MassHealth to cover the costs of smoking cessation programs and nicotine replacement therapy. The measure also raises the penalties on retailers for illegal tobacco sales and provides that businesses that don’t comply with the new law could have their Lottery licenses temporarily suspended. “It is essential our young people have the opportunities to safely grow up in the commonwealth, and we have made strides in the prevention of youth nicotine and taken bold action in the face of a growing, deadly public health risk,” said Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito. “Today e-cigarettes are the most commonly used form of tobacco by youth in Massachusetts. This legislation will further restrict the sale of nicotine-containing products to minors, providing the opportunity for them to live healthy, safe lives.” «These products are already outlawed for children,” said Rep. Shaunna O’Connell (R-Taunton) who opposed the law. “I trust that adults can make intelligent decisions on these products.» “The current youth vaping epidemic is the result of age-old industry tactics used to target kids,” said Sen. John Keenan (D– Quincy), the lead sponsor of the legislation. “We had made great strides in Massachusetts at decreasing the number of youth smokers, but with the introduction of e-cigarettes and the variety of flavors available, we lost decades of progress. With this bill, we are telling Big Tobacco they can never again use flavors to target kids in Massachusetts … My hope is that as we listened to the brave voices of the young people in Massachusetts, other states will do the same and pass legislation to prevent youth nicotine addiction.” Some opponents argued the bill will hurt Bay State businesses on the New Hampshire border. “This bill will just send even more business over the border and some of that business will be young adults,” said Rep. Colleen Garry (D-Dracut). “I don’t think it will stop people from smoking. It will just have them buying cigarettes and other things in New Hampshire.” Here are local senators’ votes on some proposed amendments to the ban: EXEMPT MILITARY (S 2407) Senate 9-29, rejected an amendment which would allow retailers to maintain reserves of flavored tobacco products for sale to customers who present a valid military identification. Amendment supporters said men and women who serve and risk their lives to protect our freedom should not be denied the right to smoke flavored tobacco in their own country. They noted that under Massachusetts law they are allowed to smoke marijuana but not a flavored cigarette. Some amendment opponents said once you allow flavored tobacco back in the state there is no telling where it might end up. Others said the words “military identification” is a broad term and there are some identifications considered military that are given to dependents and family members. They argued it would be very difficult to keep track of who has the right type of identification to enable them to go into a store that may or may not have enough of the product for them. (A “Yes” vote is for allowing military personnel to buy flavored tobacco. A “No” vote is against allowing it.) Sen. Joseph Boncore No FISCAL IMPACT OF THE BAN (S 2407) Senate 9-30, rejected an amendment requiring the Revenue Committee and Ways and Means Committee to conduct a fiscal analysis on the expected loss of tax revenues from the ban and its impact on important state programs. Amendment supporters said menthol products represent up to one-third of the state’s excise tax revenue and that means tens of millions of dollars will be lost. They argued that consumers will go to border states to purchase flavored tobacco resulting in a loss of tax revenue for the state and income for convenience store owners. They noted the ban is not guaranteed to reduce the use of menthol and because people will buy it out of state and still suffer the same health problems they would if they bought it in Massachusetts. Amendment opponents said it would be very difficult to project the amount of lost revenue. They noted that the ban will result in better health with some people smoking less and teens not getting started in the first place. (A “Yes” vote is for the study. A “No” vote is against it.) Sen. Joseph Boncore No DO NOT ALLOW CONFISCATION OF VAPE ITEMS AND A CAR (S 2407) Senate 39-0, approved an amendment that would delete from the bill a section that allows police officers who discover untaxed e-cigarettes, vaporizers, vape pens, e-cigars, e-hookah and other vaping devices in the possession of a person who is not a licensed distributor, to seize the items and any vending machine or other receptacle including a motor vehicle, boat or airplane in which the items are found. The items would be forfeited and turned over to the state which would destroy the items and either destroy or auction off the vehicle. Amendment supporters said the section is draconian and goes too far by allowing law enforcement to confiscate a person’s car for simply possessing untaxed vaping equipment. They said the Senate must make sure the state doesn’t overstep its bounds and seize and sell or destroy a car that a person needs to go back and forth from work and for daily living. (A “Yes” vote is for deleting the section and against confiscation.) Sen. Joseph Boncore Yes HOW LONG WAS LAST WEEK’S SESSION? Beacon Hill Roll Call tracks the length of time that the House and Senate were in session each week. Many legislators say that legislative sessions are only one aspect of the Legislature’s job and that a lot of important work is done outside of the House and Senate chambers. They note that their jobs also involve committee work, research, constituent work and other matters that are important to their districts. Critics say that the Legislature does not meet regularly or long enough to debate and vote in public view on the thousands of pieces of legislation that have been filed. They note that the infrequency and brief length of sessions are misguided and lead to irresponsible late-night sessions and a mad rush to act on dozens of bills in the days immediately preceding the end of an annual session. During the week of November 25-29, the House met for a total of 15 minutes and the Senate met for a total of ten minutes. Mon. November 25 No House session Senate 11:16 a.m. to 11:19 a.m. Tues. November 26 House 11:00 a.m. to 11:10 a.m. No Senate session Wed. November 27 House 11:00 a.m. to 11:05 a.m. Senate 11:05 a.m. to 11:12 a.m. Thurs. November 28 No House session No Senate session Fri. November 29 No House session No Senate session Bob Katzen welcomes feedback at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com
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