SIXTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
Second Regular Session 
SENATE 
S.No. 
2819 
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Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
AN ACT 
REQUIRING CIGARETTES TO BE MANUFACTURED 
PURSUANT TO FIRE SAFETY STANDARDS 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
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A fire-safe cigarette has a reduced propensity to bum when left unattended. The 
most common fire-safe technology used by cigarette manufacturers is to wrap cigarettes 
with two or three thin bands of less-porous paper that act as "speed bumps" to slow down 
a burning cigarette. If a fire-safe cigarette is left unattended, the burning tobacco will 
reach one of these speed bumps and self-extinguish. 
The idea for fire safe cigarettes is not new. In 1929, a cigarette-ignited fire in 
Lowell, MA, caught the attention of U.S. Congresswoman Edith Nourse Rogers; she 
called for the National Bureau of Standards (Bureau) to develop technology for "self-
snubbing" cigarettes. Sometime in 1932, after three years of research, the Bureau had 
developed a "selfsnubbing" cigarette and the Bureau suggested that cigarette 
manufacturers "take up the idea." No cigarette manufacturer took the advice of the 
Bureau. Likewise, there were other attempts to make it a legal requirement for cigarette 
manufacturers to make their cigarettes fire-safe but these initiatives were defeated by 
tobacco lobbyists. 
In 2004, New York State saw a dramatic decline in deaths caused by cigarette fires 
in the first few months alone following its adoption of its Fire Safe Cigarettes Act. Since 
then, not only other US states but also other countries have begun to realize the use of 


cigarettes with a proven, reduced propensity to ignite other materials saves lives and 
offers the best opportunity to achieve the next big leap forward in fire protection. 
This bill seeks to create the Philippines' own Fire Safe Cigarettes Law, III an 
attempt to reduce - if not eliminate - fire accidents caused by cigarette fires. 1 
~~ )~ 
MIRIAM DEF~~SANTI/GO 
~ 
1 This bill was originally filed during the Fourteenth Congress, First Regular Session. 
2 


SIXTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
Second Regular Session 
SEN1}.TE 
S. No. 
2lS19 
) 
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Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
AN ACT 
REQUIRING CIGARETTES TO BE MANUFACTURED 
PURSUANT TO FIRE SAFETY STANDARDS 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
1 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as "Fire Safe Cigarettes Act". 
2 
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to promote the 
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general welfare of the people. Pursuant to this policy, this Act seeks to protect people 
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from fire accidents caused by cigarettes. 
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SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. - For purposes of this Act: 
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A. "Agent" shall mean any person authorized by the Bureau of Internal 
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Revenue to purchase and affix tax stamps on packages of cigarettes; 
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B. "Cigarette" shall mean: 
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1. Any roll for smoking, whether made wholly or in part of tobacco 
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or any other substance, irrespective of size or shape, and whether 
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or not such tobacco or substance is flavored, adulterated or mixed 
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with any other ingredient, the wrapper or cover of which is made 
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of paper or any other substance or material, other than leaf 
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tobacco; or 
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2. Any roll for smoking wrapped in any substance containing 
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tobacco which, because of its appearance, the type of tobacco 


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used in the filler, or its packaging and labelling, is likely to be 
offered to, or purchased by, consumers as a cigarette as described 
in Paragraph I above. 
C. "Consumer testing" shall mean an assessment of cigarettes that is 
conducted by a manufacturer or under the control and direction of a 
manufacturer, for the purpose of evaluating consumer acceptance of 
such cigarettes, utilizing only the quantity of cigarettes that is 
reasonably necessary for such assessment, and in a controlled setting 
where the cigarettes are either consumed on-site or returned to the 
testing administrators at the conclusion of the testing; 
D. "Director" shall mean the Director of the Bureau of Fire Protection; 
E. "Manufacturer" shall mean: 
1. Any entity which manufactures or otherwise produces cigarettes 
or causes cigarettes to be manufactured or produced anywhere 
that such manufacturer intends to be sold in the Philippines, 
including cigarettes intended to be sold in the Philippines through 
an importer; or 
2. The first purchaser anywhere that intends to resell in the 
Philippines cigarettes manufactured anywhere that the original 
manufacturer or maker does not intend to be sold in the 
Philippines; or 
3. Any entity that becomes a successor of an entity described in 
Paragraph I or 2 above. 
F. 
"Quality control and quality assurance program" shall mean the 
laboratory procedures implemented to ensure that operator bias, 
systematic and non-systematic methodological errors, and equipment-
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related problems do not affect the results of the testing. Such a program 
ensures that the testing repeatability remains within the required 
repeatability values stated in Section 4 of this Act for all test trials used 
to certify cigarettes in accordance with this Act; 
O. "Repeatability" shall mean the range of values within which the repeat 
results of cigarette test trials from a single laboratory will fall 95 
percent of the time; 
H. "Retail dealer" shall mean any person, other than a manufacturer or 
wholesale dealer, engaged in selling cigarettes or tobacco products; 
1. 
"Sale" shall mean any transfer of title or possession or both, exchange 
or barter, conditional or otherwise, in any manner or by any means 
whatever or any agreement therefor. In addition to cash and credit 
sales, the giving of cigarettes as samples, prizes or gifts, and the 
exchanging of cigarettes for any consideration other than money, are 
considered sales; 
1. 
"Sell" shall mean to sell, or to offer or agree to do the same; and 
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K. "Wholesale dealer" shall mean any person other than a manufacturer 
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who sells cigarettes or tobacco products to retail dealers or other 
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persons for purposes of resale, and any person who owns, operates or 
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maintains one or more cigarette or tobacco product vending machines 
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in, at or upon premises owned or occupied by any other person. 
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SECTION 4. Test Method and Performance Standard. ~ 
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A. Except as provided in Paragraph (0) of this Section, no cigarettes may 
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be sold or offered for sale in this State or offered for sale or sold to 
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persons located in the Philippines unless the cigarettes have been tested 
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in accordance with the test method and meet the performance standard 
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specified in this section, a written certification has been filed by the 
manufacturer with the Bureau of Fire Protection in accordance with 
Section 5 of this Act, and the cigarettes have been marked in 
accordance with Section 6 of this Act. 
In addition, the following guidelines regarding the test method 
and performance standard of cigarettes shall be observed: 
1. Testing of cigarettes shall be conducted in accordance with the 
American Society of Testing and Materials ("ASTM") standard 
E2187-04, "Standard Test Method for Measuring the Ignition 
Strength of Cigarettes." 
2. Testing shall be conducted on 10 layers of filter paper. 
3. No more than 25 percent of the cigarettes tested in a test trial in 
accordance with this section shall exhibit full-length bums. Forty 
replicate tests shall comprise a complete test trial for each 
cigarette tested. 
4. The performance standard required by this section shall only be 
applied to a complete test trial. 
5. Written certifications shall he based upon testing conducted by a 
laboratory that has been accredited pursuant to standard ISO/IEC 
17025 of the International Organization for Standardization 
("ISO"), or other comparable accreditation standard required by 
the Bureau of Fire Protection. 
6. Laboratories conducting testing in accordance with this section 
shall implement a quality control and quality assurance program 
that includes a procedure that will determine the repeatability of 
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the testing results. The repeatability value shall be no greater than 
0.19. 
7. This section does not require additional testing if cigarettes are 
tested consistent with this Act for any other purpose. 
8. Testing performed or sponsored by the Bureau of Fire Protection 
to determine a cigarette's compliance with the performance 
standard required shall be conducted in accordance with this 
section. 
B. Each cigarette listed in a certification submitted pursuant to Section 5 
of this Act that uses lowered permeability bands in the cigarette paper 
to achieve compliance with the performance standard set forth in this 
section shall have at least two nominally identical bands on the paper 
surrounding the tobacco column. At least one complete band shall be 
located at least 15 millimetres from the lighting end of the cigarette. 
For cigarettes on which the bands are positioned by design, there shall 
be at least two hands fully located at least 15 millimeters from the 
lighting end and 10 millimeters from the filter end of the tobacco 
column, or 10 millimeters from the labelled end of the tobacco column 
for non-filtered cigarettes. 
C. A manufacturer of a cigarette that the Bureau of Fire Protection 
determines cannot he tested in accordance with the test method 
prescribed in Paragraph (A)(l) of this section shall propose a test 
method and performance standard for the cigarette to the Bureau of 
Fire Protection. Upon approval of the proposed test method and a 
determination by the Bureau of Fire Protection that the performance 
standard proposed by the manufacturer is equivalent to the 
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D. 
performance standard prescribed in Paragraph (A)(3) of this Section, 
the manufacturer may employ such test method and performance 
standard to certity such cigarette pursuant to Section 5 of this Act. If 
the Bureau of Fire Protection determines that another state has enacted 
reduced cigarette ignition propensity standards that include a test 
method and performance standard that are the same as those contained 
in this Act, and the Bureau of Fire Protection finds that the officials 
responsible for implementing those requirements have approved the 
proposed alternative test method and performance standard for a 
particular cigarette proposed by a manufacturer as meeting the fire 
safety standards of that state's law or regulation under a legal provision 
comparable to this Section, then the Bureau of Fire Protection shall 
authorize that manufacturer to employ the alternative test method and 
performance standard to certity that cigarette for sale in this State, 
unless the Bureau of Fire demonstrates a reasonable basis why the 
alternative test should not be accepted under this Act. All other 
applicable requirements of this section shall apply to the manufacturer. 
Each manufacturer shall maintain copies of the reports of all tests 
conducted on all cigarettes offered for sale for a period of three (3) 
years, and shall make copies of these reports available to the Bureau of 
Fire Protection and other government agencies upon written request. 
Any manufacturer who fails to make copies of these reports available 
within sixty days of receiving a written request shall be subject to a 
penalty not to exceed Ten Thousand Pesos (PIO,OOO) for each day after 
the sixtieth day that the manufacturer does not make such copies 
available. 
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E. 
The Bureau of Fire Protection may adopt a subsequent ASTM Standard 
Test Method for measuring the Ignition Strength of Cigarettes upon a 
finding that such subsequent method does not result in a change in the 
percentage of full-length burns exhibited by any tested cigarette when 
compared to the percentage of full-length burns the same cigarette 
would exhibit when tested in accordance with ASTM Standard E2187-
04 and the performance standard in Paragraph (A) (3) of this Section. 
F. 
The Bureau of Fire Protection shall review the effectiveness of this 
section and report every three (3) years to the Legislature its findings 
and, if appropriate, recommendations for legislation to improve the 
effectiveness of this Act. The report and legislative recommendations 
shall be submitted no later than June thirtieth following the conclusion 
of each three-year period. 
G. The requirements of Paragraph (A) of this section shall not prohibit: 
I. Wholesale or retail dealers from selling their existing inventory 
of cigarettes on or after the effective date of this Act if the 
wholesale or retailer dealer can establish that state tax stamps 
were affixed to the cigarettes prior to the effective date and the 
wholesale or retailer dealer can establish that the inventory was 
purchased prior to the effective date in comparable quantity to 
the inventory purchased during the same period of the prior year; 
or 
2. The sale of cigarettes solely for the purpose of consumer testing. 
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SECTION 5. Certification and Product Change.-
~ '1U~ 
A. Each manufacturer shall submit Bureau of Fire Protection a written V" 
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certification attesting that: 
1. Each cigarette listed m the certification has been tested m 
accordance with Section 4 of this Act; and 
2. Each cigarette listed in the certification meets the performance 
standard set forth in Section 4. 
B. Each cigarette listed in the certification shall be described with the 
following information: 
1. Brand, or trade name on the package; 
2. Style, such as light or ultra-light; 
3. Length in millimeters; 
4. Circumference in millimeters; 
5. Flavor, such as menthol or chocolate, if applicable; 
6. Filter or non-filter; 
7. Package description, such as soft pack or box; 
8. Marking pursuant to Section 6 of this Act; 
9. The name, address and telephone number of the laboratory, if 
different than the manufacturer that conducted the test; and 
10. The date that the testing occurred 
C. The certifications shall be made available to any government agency 
for purposes consistent with this Act and the Bureau of Fire Protection 
for the purposes of ensuring compliance with this Section. 
D. Each cigarette certified under this section shall be fe-certified every 
three (3) years. 
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E. For each cigarette listed in a certification, a manufacturer shall pay to 
the Bureau of fire protection a fee of Five Hundred Pesos (1'500). The 
Bureau of Fire Protection is authorized to annually adjust this fee to 
ensure it defrays the actual costs of the processing, testing, 
enforcement and oversight activities required by this Act. 
F, 
There is established in the National Treasury a separate, nonlapsing 
fund to be known as the "Cigarette Fire Safety Standard Act 
Enforcement Fund." The fund shall consist of all certification fees 
submitted by manufacturers, and shall, in addition to any other monies 
made available for such purpose, subject to relevant Commission on 
Audit rules and regulations regarding the disposition funds, be 
available to the Bureau of Fire Protection solely to support processing, 
testing, enforcement and oversight activities under this Act. 
G. If a manufacturer has certified a cigarette pursuant to this Section, and 
thereafter makes any change to such cigarette that is likely to alter its 
compliance with the reduced cigarette ignition propensity standards 
required by this Act, that cigarette shall not be sold or offered for sale 
in the Philippines until the manufacturer retests the cigarette in 
accordance with the testing standards set forth in Section 4 of this Act 
and maintains records of that retesting as required by Section 4 of this 
Act. Any altered cigarette which does not meet the performance 
standard set forth in Section 4 of this Act may not be sold in the 
Philippines. 
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SECTION 6. Marking a/Cigarette Packaging.-
2 
A. Cigarettes that are certified by a manufacturer m accordance with 
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Section 5 of this Act shall be marked to indicate compliance with the 
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requirements of Section 4 of this Act. The marking shall be in eight 
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point type or larger and consist of: 
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1. Modification of the product UPC Code to include a visible mark 
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printed at or around the area of the UPC Code. The mark may 
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consist of alphanumeric or symbolic characters permanently 
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stamped, engraved, embossed or printed in conjunction with the 
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UPC;or 
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2. Any visible combination of alphanumeric or symbolic characters 
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permanently stamped, engraved or embossed upon the cigarette 
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package or cellophane wrap; or 
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3. Printed, stamped, engraved or embossed text that indicates that 
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the cigarettes meet the standards of this Act. 
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B. A manufacturer shall use only one marking, and shall apply this 
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marking uniformly for all packages, including but not limited to packs, 
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cartons, and cases, and brands marketed by that manufacturer. 
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C. The Bureau of Fire Protection shall be notified as to the marking that is 
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selected. 
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D. Prior to the certification of any cigarette, a manufacturer shall present 
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its proposed marking to the Bureau of Fire Protection for approval. 
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Upon receipt of the request, the Bureau of Fire Protection shall approve 
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or disapprove the marking offered, except that the Bureau shall 
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approve: 
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1. Any marking in use and approved for sale in the Philippines 
pursuant to the Philippine Fire Safety Standards for Cigarettes, or 
The letters "FSC," which signifies Fire Standards Compliant 
appearing in 8 point type or larger and be pennanently printed, 
stamped, engraved or embossed on the package at or near the 
UPC code. 
2. Proposed markings shall be deemed approved if the Bureau of 
Fire Protection fails to act within fifteen (15) business days of 
receiving a request for approval. 
E. No manufacturer shall modify its approved marking unless the 
modification has been approved by the Bureau of Fire Protection in 
accordance with this Section. 
F. 
Manufacturers certifYing cigarettes in accordance with Section 5 ofthis 
Act shall provide a copy of the certifications to all wholesale dealers 
and agents to which they sell cigarettes, and shall also provide 
sufficient copies of an illustration of the package marking utilized by 
the manufacturer pursuant to this section for each retail dealer to which 
the wholesale dealers or agents sell cigarettes. Wholesale dealers and 
agents shall provide a copy of these package markings received from 
manufacturers to all retail dealers to which they sell cigarettes. 
Wholesale dealers, agents and retail dealers shall permit the Bureau of 
Fire Protection, the Bureau of Internal revenue, the Department of 
Trade and Industry, and their employees to inspect markings of 
cigarette packaging marked in accordance with this Section. 
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SECTION 7. Penalties. -
2 
A. A manufacturer, wholesale dealer, agent or any other person or entity 
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who knowingly sells or offers to sell cigarettes, other than through 
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retail sale, in violation of Section 4 of this Act, shall be subject to a 
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penalty of not more than Two Hundred Pesos (P200.00) for each pack 
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of such cigarettes sold or offered for sale provided that in no case shall 
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the penalty against any such person or entity exceed Two Hundred 
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Thousand Pesos (P200,000.00) during any thirty-day period. 
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B. A retail dealer who knowingly sells or offers to sell cigarettes III 
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violation of Section 4 of this Act shall be subject to a penalty of not 
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more than Two Hundred Pesos (P200) for each pack of such cigarettes 
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sold or offered for sale provided that in no case shall the penalty 
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against any such person or entity exceed Two Hundred Thousand 
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Pesos (P 100,000) during any thirty-day period. 
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C. In addition to any penalty prescribed by law, any corporation, 
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partnership, sole proprietor, limited partnership or association engaged 
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in the manufacture of cigarettes that knowingly makes a false 
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certification pursuant to Section 5 of this Act shall be subject to a 
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penalty of not less than One Hundred Thousand Pesos (PIOO,OOO) but 
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not more than Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (PSOO,OOO) for each such 
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false certification. 
22 
D. Any person violating any other provision in this Act shall be subject to 
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a penalty for a first offense of not more than One Thousand Pesos 
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(PI,OOO), and for a subsequent offense subject to a penalty not to 
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exceed Five Thousand Pesos (PS,OOO) for each such violation. 
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E. Any cigarettes that have been sold or offered for sale that do not 
comply with the performance standard required by Section 4 of this 
Act shall be subject to forfeiture [under the pertinent provision of state 
law having to do with forfeiture of contraband]. Cigarettes forfeited 
pursuant to this section shall be destroyed; provided, however, that 
prior to the destruction of any cigarette forfeited pursuant to these 
provisions, the true holder of the trademark rights in the cigarette brand 
shall be permitted to inspect the cigarette. 
F. In addition to any other remedy provided by law, the Bureau of Fire 
Protection, the Solicitor General or any other government agency 
adversely affected may file an action in the Regional Trial Court, 
subject to the rules on venue of actions under the Rules of Court, for a 
violation of this Act, including petitioning for injunctive relief or to 
recover any costs or damages suffered by the State because of a 
violation of this Act, including enforcement costs relating to the 
specific violation and attorney's fees. Each violation of this Act or of 
the Rules and Regulations adopted under this Act constitutes a separate 
violation for which the Bureau of Fire Protection, Attorney General or 
any other government agency adversely affected may obtain relief. 
G. Whenever any law enforcement personnel or duly authorized 
representative of the Bureau of Fire Protection shall discover any 
cigarettes that have not been marked in the manner required by section 
6 of this Act, such personnel is hereby authorized and empowered to 
seize and take possession of such cigarettes. Such cigarettes shall be 
turned over to the Bureau ofInternal Revenue, and shall be forfeited to 
the state. Cigarettes seized pursuant to this section shall be destroyed; 
13 


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provided, however, that prior to the destruction of any cigarette seized 
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pursuant to these provisions, the true holder of the trademark rights in 
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the cigarette brand shall be permitted to inspect the cigarette. 
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SECTION 8. Implementation. - Within sixty (60) days from the promulgation of 
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this Act, the Bureau of Fire Protection shall promulgate rules and regulations, pursuant to 
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the law on publication, necessary to effectuate the purposes of this Act. 
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The Bureau of Internal Revenue or its representatives in the regular course of 
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conducting inspections of wholesale dealers, agents and retail dealers, as authorized 
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under the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended, may inspect such cigarettes to 
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determine if the cigarettes are marked as required by Section 6 of this Act. If the 
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cigarettes are not marked as required, the Bureau of Internal Revenue or its 
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representatives shall notifY the Bureau of Fire Protection. 
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SECTION 9. Inspection. - To enforce the provisions of this Act, the Solicitor 
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General, the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Bureau of Fire Protection, their duly 
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authorized representatives and other law enforcement personnel are hereby authorized to 
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examine the books, papers, invoices and other records of any person in possession, 
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control or occupancy of any premises where cigarettes are placed, stored, sold or offered 
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for sale, as well as the stock of cigarettes on the premises. Every person in the possession, 
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control or occupancy of any premises where cigarettes are placed, sold or offered for sale, 
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is hereby directed and required to give the Solicitor General, the Bureau of Internal 
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Revenue and the Bureau of Fire Protection, their duly authorized representatives and 
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other law enforcement personnel the means, facilities and opportunity for the 
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examinations authorized by this Section. 
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SECTION 10. Cigarette Fire Safety Standard Fund. - There is hereby established 
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111 the National Treasury a special fund to be lmown as the "Cigarette Fire Safety 
14 


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Standard Fund." The fund shall consist of all monies recovered as penalties under Section 
2 
7 of this Act. The monies shall be deposited to the credit ofthe fund and shall, in addition 
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to any other monies made available for such purpose, be made available to the Bureau of 
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Fire Protection to support fire safety and prevention programs. 
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SECTION 11. Sale Outside the Philippines. - Nothing in this Act shall be 
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construed to prohibit any person or entity from manufacturing or selling cigarettes that do 
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not meet the requirements of Section 4 of this Act if the cigarettes are or will be stamped 
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for sale in another country or are packaged for sale outside the Philippines and that 
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person or entity has taken reasonable steps to ensure that such cigarettes will not be sold 
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or offered for sale to persons located in the Philippines. 
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SECTION 12. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is held invalid or 
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unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the other 
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provisions hereof. 
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SECTION 13. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, orders, and issuances, or 
, 
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portions thereof, which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, are hereby 
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repealed, amended or modified accordingly. 
17 
SECTION 14. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days 
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after its publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general 
19 
circulation. 
Approved, 
iam14June2015 
15