I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4886
To amend the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act and the Com-
prehensive Smokeless Tobacco Health Education Act of 1986 to require
warning labels for tobacco products.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JULY 19, 2000
Mr. HANSEN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising
Act and the Comprehensive Smokeless Tobacco Health
Education Act of 1986 to require warning labels for
tobacco products.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Stronger Tobacco
Warning Labels to Save Lives Act’’.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO FEDERAL CIGARETTE AND LABEL-
ING ADVERTISING ACT.
(a) AMENDMENT.—The Federal Cigarette Labeling
and Advertising Act (15 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.) is amended
by striking section 4 and inserting the following:
‘‘SEC. 4. LABELING.
‘‘(a) LABEL.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any
person to manufacture, package, or import for sale
or distribution within the United States any ciga-
rettes the package of which fails to bear, in accord-
ance with the requirements of this section, a warn-
ing label.
‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this section, the Sec-
retary shall promulgate regulations describing the
warning label required by paragraph (1).
‘‘(3) CONTENT
OF LABEL.—The regulations
promulgated under paragraph (2) shall ensure that
the text of each warning label addresses one of the
following:
‘‘(A) Diseases or fatal health conditions
caused by cigarette smoking.
‘‘(B) Any physical addiction that results
from cigarette smoking.
‘‘(C) The influence that cigarette smoking
by adults has on young children and teenagers
and the consequences of such use.
‘‘(D) The health hazards of secondhand
smoke from cigarettes.
‘‘(4) GRAPHICS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The regulations pro-
mulgated under paragraph (2) shall ensure that
each warning label contains a color graphic or
picture that illustrates or emphasizes to the
greatest practicable extent the message of the
text of the corresponding warning label.
‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—The graphics described
in subparagraph (A) shall enhance the message
of the text of the warning label and may include
a color picture of one of the following:
‘‘(i) A diseased lung, heart, or mouth.
‘‘(ii) An individual suffering from ad-
diction.
‘‘(iii) Children watching an adult
smoke a cigarette.
‘‘(iv) An individual adversely affected
by secondhand smoke from a cigarette, in-
cluding pregnant women or infants.
‘‘(b) ADVERTISING.—It shall be unlawful for any
manufacturer or importer of cigarettes to advertise or
cause to be advertised within the United States any ciga-
rette unless the advertising bears, in accordance with the
requirements of this section, one of the warning label
statements required by subsection (a).
‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR LABELING.—
‘‘(1) LOCATION.—Each label statement re-
quired by subsection (a) shall be located on the
upper portion of the front panel of the cigarette
package (or carton) and occupy not less than 50
percent of such front panel.
‘‘(2) TYPE AND COLOR.—Each label statement
required by subsection (a) shall be printed in at
least 17 point type with adjustments as determined
appropriate by the Secretary. All the letters in the
label shall appear in conspicuous and legible type, in
contrast by typography, layout, or color with all
other printed material on the package, and be print-
ed in a black-on-white or white-on-black format as
determined appropriate by the Secretary.
‘‘(d) REQUIREMENTS FOR ADVERTISING.—
‘‘(1) LOCATION.—Each label statement re-
quired by subsection (b) shall occupy not less than
50 percent of the area of the advertisement involved.
‘‘(2) TYPE AND COLOR.—
‘‘(A) TYPE.—Each label statement re-
quired by subsection (b) shall be printed in a
point type that is not less than the following
types:
‘‘(i) With respect to whole page adver-
tisements on broadsheet newspaper—45
point type.
‘‘(ii) With respect to half page adver-
tisements on broadsheet newspaper—39
point type.
‘‘(iii) With respect to whole page ad-
vertisements on tabloid newspaper—39
point type.
‘‘(iv) With respect to half page adver-
tisements on tabloid newspaper—27 point
type.
‘‘(v) With respect to DPS magazine
advertisements—31.5 point type.
‘‘(vi) With respect to whole page mag-
azine advertisements—31.5 point type.
‘‘(vii) With respect to 28cm x 3 col-
umn advertisements—22.5 point type.
‘‘(viii) With respect to 20cm x 2 col-
umn advertisements—15 point type.
The Secretary may revise the required type
sizes as the Secretary determines appropriate
within the 50 percent requirement.
‘‘(B) COLOR.—All the letters in the label
under this paragraph shall appear in con-
spicuous and legible type, in contrast by typog-
raphy, layout, or color with all other printed
material and be printed in an alternating black-
on-white and white-on-black format as deter-
mined appropriate by the Secretary.
‘‘(e) ROTATION OF LABEL STATEMENTS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the label statements specified in sub-
sections (a) and (b) shall be rotated by each manu-
facturer or importer of cigarettes quarterly in alter-
nating sequence on packages of each brand of ciga-
rettes manufactured by the manufacturer or im-
porter and in the advertisements for each such
brand of cigarettes in accordance with a plan sub-
mitted by the manufacturer or importer and ap-
proved by the Federal Trade Commission. The Fed-
eral Trade Commission shall approve a plan sub-
mitted by a manufacturer or importer of cigarettes
which will provide the rotation required by this sub-
section and which assures that all of the labels re-
quired by subsections (a) and (b) will be displayed
by the manufacturer or importer at the same time.
‘‘(2) APPLICATION
OF
OTHER
ROTATION
RE-
QUIREMENTS.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—A manufacturer or
importer of cigarettes may apply to the Federal
Trade Commission to have the label rotation
described in subparagraph (C) apply with re-
spect to a brand style of cigarettes manufac-
tured or imported by such manufacturer or im-
porter if—
‘‘(i) the number of cigarettes of such
brand style sold in the fiscal year by the
manufacturer or importer preceding the
submission of the application is less than
1⁄4 of 1 percent of all the cigarettes sold in
the United States in such year; and
‘‘(ii) more than 1⁄2 of the cigarettes
manufactured or imported by such manu-
facturer or importer for sale in the United
States are packaged into brand styles
which meet the requirements of clause (i).
If an application is approved by the Commis-
sion, the label rotation described in subpara-
graph (C) shall apply with respect to the appli-
cant during the 1-year period beginning on the
date of the application approval.
‘‘(B) PLAN.—An applicant under subpara-
graph (A) shall include in its application a plan
under which the label statements specified in
subsection (a) will be rotated by the applicant
manufacturer or importer in accordance with
the label rotation described in subparagraph
(C).
‘‘(C) OTHER ROTATION REQUIREMENTS.—
Under the label rotation which the manufac-
turer or importer with an approved application
may put into effect, each of the labels specified
in subsection (a) shall appear on the packages
of each brand style of cigarettes with respect to
which the application was approved an equal
number of times within the 12-month period be-
ginning on the date of the approval by the
Commission of the application.
‘‘(f) APPLICATION
OF REQUIREMENT.—Subsection
(a) does not apply to a distributor or a retailer of ciga-
rettes who does not manufacture, package, or import ciga-
rettes for sale or distribution within the United States.
‘‘(g) CIGARS; PIPE TOBACCO.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall pro-
mulgate such regulations as may be necessary to es-
tablish warning labels for cigars and pipe tobacco.
Such regulations shall require content-specific mes-
sages regarding health hazards posed by cigars and
pipe tobacco, include graphic illustrations of such
content messages, as is required under subsection
(a), and be formatted in a clear and unambiguous
manner, as is required under subsection (a).
‘‘(2) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:
‘‘(A) CIGAR.—The term ‘cigar’ means any
roll of tobacco wrapped in leaf tobacco or in any
substance containing tobacco (other than any
roll of tobacco that is a cigarette or cigarillo).
‘‘(B) PIPE TOBACCO.—The term ‘pipe to-
bacco’ means any loose tobacco that, because of
the appearance, type, packaging or labeling of
such tobacco, is likely to be offered to, or pur-
chased by, consumers as a tobacco to be
smoked in a pipe.’’
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
this section shall take effect 1 year after the date of enact-
ment of this section.
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The graphics described in
paragraph (1) shall enhance the message of the text
of the warning label and may include a color picture
of one of the following:
‘‘(A) A diseased mouth or other physical
effect of using smokeless tobacco products.
‘‘(B) An individual using a smokeless to-
bacco product.
‘‘(C) Children watching an adult use a
smokeless tobacco product.
‘‘(f) FORMAT.—
‘‘(1) LOCATION.—Each label statement re-
quired by subsection (a)(1) shall be located on the
principal display panel of the product and occupy
not less than 50 percent of such panel.
‘‘(2) TYPE AND COLOR.—Each label statement
required by subsection (a)(1) shall be printed in 17
point type with adjustments as determined appro-
priate by the Secretary to reflect the length of the
required statement. All the letters in the label shall
appear in conspicuous and legible type in contrast by
typography, layout, or color with all other printed
material on the package and be printed in an alter-
nating black on white and white on black format as
determined appropriate by the Secretary.
‘‘(g) ADVERTISING AND ROTATION.—The provisions
of sections (d) and (e)(1) of the Federal Cigarette Label-
ing and Advertising Act (as amended by the Stronger To-
bacco Warning Labels to Save Lives Act) shall apply to
advertisements for smokeless tobacco products required
under subsection (a)(2) and the rotation of the label state-
ments required under subsection (a)(1) on such products.
‘‘(h) APPLICATION OF REQUIREMENT.—Subsection
(a) does not apply to a distributor or a retailer of smoke-
less tobacco products who does not manufacture, package,
or import such products for sale or distribution within the
United States.
‘‘(i) TELEVISION AND RADIO ADVERTISING.—It shall
be unlawful to advertise smokeless tobacco or cigars on
any medium of electronic communications subject to the
jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commis-
sion.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
this section shall take effect 1 year after the date of enact-
ment of this section.
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