I 
107TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5724
To prevent the sale of tobacco products to minors, and the circumvention 
of State tobacco taxes, by means of electronic sales, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 13, 2002
Mr. MEEHAN (for himself and Mr. HANSEN) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To prevent the sale of tobacco products to minors, and 
the circumvention of State tobacco taxes, by means of 
electronic sales, and for other purposes.
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 ‘‘Tobacco Free Internet 
for Kids Act of 2002’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) The term ‘‘adjusted for inflation’’ means 
adjusted annually to account for inflation by using 
the percentage change in the consumer price index
for all urban consumers (all items; United States 
city average) for the 12-month period ending on the 
June 30 preceding the beginning of the fiscal year 
for which the adjustment is made. 
(2) The term ‘‘authorized State tobacco dis-
tributor’’ means a person—
(A) that is authorized or otherwise licensed 
by a State to account for and pay excise or 
other taxes imposed by the State on tobacco 
products sold, distributed, or otherwise deliv-
ered in or into the State; and 
(B) that has complied with the accounting 
and payment requirements relating to such li-
cense or authorization with respect to the to-
bacco products involved. 
(3) The term ‘‘carrier’’ means any person who 
delivers transit tobacco products to consumers, in-
cluding all private delivery services and the United 
States Postal Service, as defined by section 102 of 
title 39, United States Code. 
(4) The term ‘‘consumer’’ means a human 
being who purchases or arranges or attempts to pur-
chase a tobacco product either for the consumer or 
on behalf of some other person.
(5) The term ‘‘minor’’ means an individual who 
has not attained the age of 18 years or, if older, the 
minimum age for the purchase of a tobacco product 
under applicable State law or Indian tribal law. 
(6) The term ‘‘person’’ means any corporation, 
company, partnership, joint stock companies, foun-
dation, association, organization, individual, State or 
local government, Indian tribal government, or any 
group thereof. 
(7) The term ‘‘State’’ includes the District of 
Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and 
any other commonwealth, territory, or possession of 
the United States. 
(8) The term ‘‘tobacco product’’ has the mean-
ing given that term in section 5702(c) of the Inter-
nal Revenue Code of 1986, and also includes any 
other product that contains tobacco and is meant for 
human consumption. 
(9) The term ‘‘tobacco supplier’’ means a per-
son that distributes, sells, or otherwise supplies a to-
bacco product to a transit tobacco seller. 
(10)(A) The term ‘‘transit tobacco sale’’ means 
the sale or offering for sale of a tobacco product, in 
or affecting interstate commerce, in which—
(i) the product is not delivered directly to 
a consumer at the time and place of purchase; 
or 
(ii) the request for purchase is placed by a 
consumer or a person—
(I) 
through 
electronic 
means 
(including by telephone, facsimile, or the 
Internet); 
(II) by mail; or 
(III) through any other means in 
which the consumer is not in the transit 
tobacco seller’s physical presence at the 
time the request for purchase is made. 
(B) A tobacco product sale that would other-
wise qualify as a ‘‘transit tobacco sale’’ is not a 
‘‘transit tobacco sale’’ for the purposes of this Act 
if the transit tobacco seller verifies that the pur-
chaser is a person—
(i) in the business of lawfully selling to-
bacco products; 
(ii) seeking to purchase a tobacco product 
for use in such business; and
(iii) licensed or otherwise authorized to sell 
tobacco products, as required by applicable 
Federal or State law;
(11) The term ‘‘transit tobacco seller’’ means 
any person making a transit tobacco sale. 
SEC. 3. DUTIES OF TRANSIT TOBACCO SELLERS. 
(a) PROHIBITIONS.—
(1) SALE TO MINORS.—No transit tobacco sell-
er may sell a tobacco product to a minor. 
(2) SALE WITHOUT STATE AUTHORIZATION.—
No person may sell a tobacco product in a transit 
tobacco sale, offer a tobacco product for sale in a 
transit tobacco sale, deliver a tobacco product in a 
transit tobacco sale, or otherwise operate as a tran-
sit tobacco seller, in, within, or into, a State unless 
such person is an authorized State tobacco dis-
tributor in such State. 
(b) VERIFICATION OF CONSUMER AGE, IDENTITY, 
AND ADDRESS.—
(1) DOCUMENTATION OF IDENTITY, AGE, AND 
ADDRESS.—Prior to accepting a tobacco product 
order in a transit tobacco sale, a transit tobacco sell-
er shall verify the consumer’s age, identity, and resi-
dential address by one of the following means: 
(A) Obtaining a copy of an official form of 
identification of the consumer that is a valid, 
unexpired identification card or other docu-
ment—
(i) issued by a Federal, State, or local 
government; 
(ii) bearing a unique identification 
number; and 
(iii) providing the identified individ-
ual’s—
(I) photograph; 
(II) name; 
(III) residential address; and 
(IV) date of birth. 
(B) Obtaining a statement from the con-
sumer that provides the following: 
(i) A description of the type of official 
form of identification possessed by the con-
sumer. 
(ii) The information described in sub-
paragraph (A) from the official form of 
identification described in clause (i). 
(iii) An assurance that the informa-
tion provided under clause (ii) is the same 
information appearing on the official form 
of identification. 
(C) Obtaining a written statement that in-
cludes the following:
(i) The information described in sub-
paragraph (A). 
(ii) A statement that the consumer 
displayed documentation that established 
the accuracy of the information provided in 
clause (i) to a notary public. 
(iii) A description of the documenta-
tion referred to in clause (ii). 
(iv) The signature of the consumer. 
(v) The signature of a notary public, 
as provided under applicable State law. 
(D) Using any other age and identity 
verification procedure established by the Sec-
retary of the Treasury that employs new tech-
nologies to provide even more stringent and ac-
curate identity and age verification methods 
than the other methods described in this para-
graph. 
(2) AGE AND IDENTITY VERIFICATION USING 
DATABASE.—Each transit tobacco seller making a 
transit tobacco sale shall verify all identity, age, and 
residential address information provided by the con-
sumer by use of a database, in accordance with sec-
tion 7.
(3) CONSUMER IDENTIFICATION VERIFICATION 
STATEMENT.—In a transit tobacco sale, the transit 
tobacco seller shall obtain a statement signed by the 
consumer (which may be a statement provided or ob-
tained and signed electronically) that states the fol-
lowing: ‘‘I affirm the accuracy of the identifying in-
formation I have provided in order to obtain a to-
bacco product in a transit tobacco sale. I understand 
that forging another person’s signature, using false 
identification, or providing false information to ob-
tain a tobacco product in a transit tobacco sale—es-
pecially when done by a minor, to provide a tobacco 
product to a minor, or to avoid applicable taxes—
violates Federal law, may violate State law, and may 
subject the violator to monetary fines or imprison-
ment, or both.’’. 
(c) NOTICES.—
(1) NOTICE TO ADDRESSEE OF INTENDED TO-
BACCO
DELIVERY.—Not less than 7 days before 
placing a tobacco product for delivery in the initial 
transit tobacco sale to a consumer, the transit to-
bacco seller shall send a notice addressed to the con-
sumer at the residential address provided under sub-
section (b)(1). The notice shall provide each of the 
following:
(A) A statement that the transit tobacco 
seller has received a request for purchase of a 
tobacco product to be placed by the consumer. 
(B) The date of the request for purchase, 
a description of the tobacco product to be deliv-
ered (including the quantity of such product), 
and the total price of the sale. 
(C) The minimum age (stated as a nu-
meral) for purchase of tobacco products under 
applicable law. 
(D) A statement requesting that the recipi-
ent of the notice inform the transit tobacco sell-
er if the recipient—
(i) is not the addressee; 
(ii) did not make the request for pur-
chase; or 
(iii) is a minor. 
(E) The means by which the recipient may 
contact the transit tobacco seller, including—
(i) a mailing address; 
(ii) a toll-free telephone number; and 
(iii) an email address.
(2) EFFECT OF NOTIFICATION TO TRANSIT TO-
BACCO SELLER OF IMPROPER SALE.—A transit to-
bacco seller that receives a notice provided under
paragraph (1), pursuant to subparagraph (D) of 
such paragraph may not deliver or place for delivery 
any tobacco product related to that notice. 
(3) NOTICES
TO
INTENDED
TOBACCO
CAR-
RIERS.—When a transit tobacco seller places a to-
bacco product for delivery with a carrier, the transit 
tobacco seller shall provide to the carrier both of the 
following: 
(A) A notice that the transit tobacco seller 
is placing (or intends to place) for delivery by 
the carrier a tobacco product as part of a tran-
sit tobacco sale. 
(B) Documentation that the transit to-
bacco seller is an authorized State tobacco dis-
tributor in each State to which a parcel is 
placed for delivery with the carrier. 
(4) NOTICES TO TOBACCO SUPPLIERS.—Before 
purchasing from a tobacco supplier a tobacco prod-
uct that may be sold in a transit tobacco sale, a 
transit tobacco seller shall provide to the tobacco 
supplier each of the following: 
(A) A notice that the transit tobacco seller 
intends to sell the tobacco product in a transit 
tobacco sale.
(B) The transaction is a sale of a tobacco 
product. 
(3) CONFIRMATION
OF
ADDRESS.—Prior to 
making a transit tobacco sale, a transit tobacco sell-
er shall confirm that the billing address on record 
with the issuer of the debit card, credit card, or 
charge card used by the consumer to make the pur-
chase is the same address as the residential address 
provided by the consumer pursuant to subsection 
(b). 
(e) METHODS OF DELIVERY.—A transit tobacco sell-
er may not deliver or place for delivery a tobacco product 
unless the arrangements for delivery to a consumer pro-
vide for the following: 
(1) ADDRESSEE.—The addressee for such a de-
livery shall be the consumer. 
(2) DELIVERY ADDRESS.—Delivery to the con-
sumer shall be made only to one of the following: 
(A) The residential address of the con-
sumer provided under subsection (b). 
(B) The workplace address of the con-
sumer, if the transit tobacco seller verifies the 
following:
(i) The address is the address of a 
business or governmental or other nonindi-
vidual entity. 
(ii) The address is not a post office 
box or other location used by the consumer 
primarily to facilitate, or otherwise accept, 
deliveries. 
(iii) The address is not more than 100 
miles from the residential address of the 
consumer provided under subsection (b)(1). 
(3) RECEIPT.—
(A) AUTHORIZED RECEIVER.—No delivery 
shall be made unless the addressee (or another 
individual present at the delivery address) pro-
vides to the person making the delivery—
(i) a signature acknowledging delivery; 
(ii) an official form of identification 
showing that the person accepting delivery 
is of minimum age for purchase of tobacco 
products under applicable law; and 
(iii) in the case of an individual other 
than the addressee, a signed statement, as 
follows: ‘‘I know the addressee of the to-
bacco product delivery for which I am sign-
ing and I affirm that the addressee has
reached the minimum legal age for pur-
chase of tobacco products under applicable 
law.’’. 
(B) 
RECEIVER
AGE
AND
IDENTITY 
VERIFICATION.—The age and identity of the in-
dividual accepting delivery under subparagraph 
(A) shall be verified by the person making the 
delivery by using a database in accordance with 
section 7, whenever such verification is available 
to the Transit Seller or can be done by the 
Transit Seller at a cost of $2.50 (adjusted for 
inflation) or less for each such verification. 
(f) LIMITATIONS ON FREQUENCY, CONTENT, AND 
AMOUNT.—A transit tobacco seller may not sell, deliver, 
or place for delivery one or more tobacco products un-
less—
(1) the consumer has not purchased a tobacco 
product from the transit tobacco seller within the 
preceding 7-day period; 
(2) the amount of tobacco product sold in a sin-
gle transit tobacco sale does not exceed—
(A) the lesser of—
(i) 2,000 cigarettes; 
(ii) 200 cigars;
(iii) 100 ounces of smokeless tobacco 
or pipe tobacco; or 
(iv) such amount of any tobacco prod-
uct as the Secretary of the Treasury may, 
by regulation, establish in order to mini-
mize—
(I) tax-avoidance by means of 
transit tobacco sales; or 
(II) illegal resale of tobacco prod-
ucts purchased in transit tobacco 
sales. 
(B) For purchases of more than one type 
of tobacco product, the total of the purchased 
amounts of each type of product, calculated as 
percentages of the maximum amounts per-
mitted under subparagraph (A), must not ex-
ceed 100 percent. 
(g) PRIVACY OF CONSUMER PERSONAL INFORMA-
TION.—
(1) USE OF CONSUMER PERSONAL INFORMA-
TION.—A transit tobacco seller may not use any in-
formation about a consumer obtained in the course 
of a transit tobacco sale for a purpose unrelated to 
the sale, unless—
(A) the consumer affirmatively grants au-
thorization for such use; 
(B) the transit tobacco seller provides to a 
consumer—
(i) an option to revoke or otherwise 
limit an authorization granted under sub-
paragraph (A); and 
(ii) clear and conspicuous notice of 
such an option in any communication per-
mitted by or otherwise relating to the au-
thorization under subparagraph (A); and 
(C) the consumer has not revoked or other-
wise limited an authorization granted under 
subparagraph (A). 
(2) OTHER
PROTECTIONS
NOT
AFFECTED.—
This subsection may not be construed to limit the ef-
fect of any other provision of Federal or State law 
protecting the disclosure or use of consumer per-
sonal information. 
(h) USE OF INTERNET WEBSITES.—A transit to-
bacco seller may not offer a tobacco product for sale 
through an Internet website unless—
(1) a consumer cannot access any website page 
that offers tobacco products for sale or transacts 
any tobacco product sale until the transit tobacco
seller has first satisfied the requirements of sub-
section (b) in relation to that consumer; and 
(2) any Internet website pages used by the 
transit tobacco to comply with the requirements of 
subsection (b) (including any website pages a con-
sumer must access prior to accessing the age and 
identify verification website pages)—
(A) are not used for any other purpose 
than to fulfill the requirements of section 3(b) 
(or to provide access to the website pages used 
to comply with those requirements); and 
(B) consist only of nonmoving black text 
on a white background, with no graphics or 
other pictorial depictions. 
(i) EXCEPTIONS
FOR
INDIAN
TRIBE
TOBACCO 
SALES.—Paragraph (2) of subsection (a) and paragraphs 
(3) and (4) of subsection (c) do not apply to a transit 
tobacco sale in which the transit tobacco seller and the 
consumer are each—
(1) a member of, or owned by, the same Indian 
tribe (as such term is defined in section 4(e) of the 
Indian Self Determination and Education Assistance 
Act (25 U.S.C. 450b(e))); and
(2) located in Indian country (as defined in sec-
tion 1151 of title 18, United States Code) occupied 
by the same Indian tribe. 
SEC. 4. DUTIES OF CARRIERS. 
(a) ACCEPTANCE FOR DELIVERY.—A carrier may not 
knowingly accept a tobacco product for delivery from a 
transit tobacco seller unless the transit tobacco seller has 
provided the carrier with all notices required by section 
3(c)(3). 
(b) UNAUTHORIZED TRANSIT TOBACCO SELLER.—
Notwithstanding a carrier’s receipt of complete notice 
under section 3(c)(3), the carrier may not accept the par-
cel for delivery if the carrier has actual knowledge that 
the transit tobacco seller is not an authorized State to-
bacco distributor in the State to which such parcel is ad-
dressed. 
SEC. 5. DUTIES OF TOBACCO SUPPLIERS. 
A tobacco supplier shall not sell or otherwise supply 
a tobacco product to a transit tobacco seller if—
(1) the tobacco supplier has not received from 
the transit tobacco seller notice under section 
3(c)(4); or 
(2) the tobacco supplier has actual knowledge 
that the transit tobacco seller is not an authorized 
State tobacco distributor in each State mentioned in
the notice provided by the transit tobacco seller 
under section 3(c)(4). 
SEC. 6. RECORDKEEPING. 
(a) MAINTENANCE.—(1) A transit tobacco seller in 
a transit tobacco sale and a tobacco supplier shall main-
tain records (which may be through electronic means) of 
the information described in section 3(c)(4) for not less 
than 5 years. 
(2) A transit tobacco seller shall maintain records in 
electronic form for not less than 5 years of all of its transit 
sales, segregated by State of delivery, that includes the 
information provided to the transit tobacco seller by each 
consumer through the transit tobacco sale process, includ-
ing—
(A) the name and contact information of the 
consumer (including E-mail addresses for all transit 
sales made via the Internet), 
(B) the amount purchased, the price paid 
(including subtotals for any collected State or other 
taxes), 
(C) the delivery address, 
(D) the name of the carrier, and 
(E) all information provided by the consumer 
under section 3(b).
(b) ACCESS.—A transit tobacco seller in a transit to-
bacco sale and a tobacco supplier shall provide access to 
the records described in subsection (a) upon the request 
of a Federal, State, or local government official authorized 
to administer or enforce Federal, State, or local laws per-
taining to—
(1) the sale of tobacco products to minors; or 
(2) taxes on tobacco products. 
SEC. 7. USE OF DATABASES. 
(a) DATABASE REQUIREMENTS.—Wherever in this 
Act verification of consumer information is required, such 
verification shall employ a database or aggregate of data-
bases consisting of information obtained exclusively from 
government-issued identification that includes a photo-
graph of the identified person (such as a State driver li-
cense or United States passport) whenever each such 
verification is available to the Transit Seller or can be 
done by the Transit Seller at a cost of $2.50 (adjusted 
for inflation) or less. 
(b) 
ALTERNATIVE
REQUIREMENT.—When 
the 
verification of subsection (a) is not available at a cost of 
$2.50 (adjusted for inflation) or less for each such 
verification, the verification of consumer information re-
quired by this Act shall either employ the verification of 
subsection (a), regardless of cost, or employ a database
or aggregate of databases consisting of information ob-
tained from government-issued identification (such as a 
State driver license or United States passport), State voter 
registration lists, or other government data sources that 
provide reliable name, residential address, and birth date 
or other age information from which it is possible to deter-
mine whether a person is not a minor. 
(c) ALTERNATIVE VERIFICATION DATABASE ND RE-
QUIREMENTS.—The Secretary of the Treasury, in con-
sultation with the Attorney General, may—
(1) establish an alternative or supplementary 
verification database consisting entirely of informa-
tion from government-issued identification that in-
cludes a photograph of the identified person or some 
other personal identifier at least as reliable as the 
person’s photograph (such as the person’s finger-
prints) that establishes the validity of the identifica-
tion and its information to facilitate the verification 
required by this Act; and 
(2) offer the database described in paragraph 
(1) as an alternative to either or both of the data-
bases described in subsections (b) and (c) or require 
its use instead of either or both of the databases de-
scribed in subsections (b) and (c) for any or all of
the verifications of consumer information required 
by this Act. 
SEC. 8. PENALTIES. 
(a) CIVIL PENALTIES.—A transit tobacco seller, car-
rier, or tobacco supplier found to have violated this Act, 
shall be liable to the United States for the profit made 
(or loss avoided) by reason of the transaction that is the 
subject of such violation, together with an additional 
amount equal to—
(1) not less than $500 or more than $1,000 for 
each separate violation found in the first enforce-
ment action resulting in such a finding; and 
(2) not less than $1,000 nor more than $5,000 
for each separate violation found in a subsequent en-
forcement action resulting in such a finding. 
The Secretary of the Treasury may bring an action in the 
appropriate United States district court to assess and col-
lect penalties under this section, and such court may im-
pose such penalties. In addition, such court may order the 
violator to pay any unpaid Federal, State, or local taxes 
associated with the tobacco product or the transaction that 
is the subject to such violation to the Federal, State, or 
local government to which such taxes are due and payable, 
and the court may provide such other equitable and legal 
relief as the court, in its discretion, deems appropriate.
(b) PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN ACTIVITIES.—
(1) VIOLATIONS
BY
SELLERS.—A transit to-
bacco seller found to have violated this Act shall be 
prohibited from selling tobacco products for the fol-
lowing periods: 
(A) For the first finding of one or more 
violations, a period of up to 10 years after the 
date of final determination of violation. 
(B) For a second or subsequent finding of 
one or more violations, permanently. 
(2) VIOLATIONS BY CARRIERS.—A carrier found 
to have violated this Act shall be prohibited from de-
livering tobacco products in a transit tobacco sale 
into or within a State in which the carrier com-
mitted a violation of this Act for the following peri-
ods: 
(A) For the first finding of one or more 
violations, a period up to 10 years after the 
date of final determination of violation. 
(B) For a second or subsequent finding of 
one or more violations, a period from 1 year to 
permanently. 
(3) VIOLATIONS
BY
SUPPLIERS.—A tobacco 
supplier found to have violated this Act shall be pro-
hibited from selling tobacco products to transit to-
bacco sellers for the following periods: 
(A) For the first finding of one or more 
violations, a period up to 10 years after the 
date of final determination of violation. 
(B) For a second or subsequent finding 
one or more violations, a period from 1 year to 
permanently. 
(c) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—A transit tobacco seller 
that knowingly violates this Act (or any person willfully 
participating in any such violation, including but not lim-
ited to any person who owns, controls, or manages the 
transit tobacco seller) shall be—
(1) fined under title 18, United States Code; or 
(2) imprisoned for—
(A) not more than 3 years for the first of-
fense; and 
(B) not more than 5 years for a subse-
quent offense; or 
(3) both imprisoned and fined. 
SEC. 9. ENFORCEMENT. 
The Secretary of the Treasury, through the Bureau 
of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (or its successor agen-
cy), shall investigate and administratively enforce this Act 
and the Act of October 19, 1949 (15 U.S.C. 375 et seq.;
Chapter 699; 63 Stat. 884; commonly known as the Jen-
kins Act). 
SEC. 10. ACTIONS BY STATES AND FEDERAL REPORTING. 
(a) ACTION AUTHORIZED.—The attorney general of 
a State, or an official or agency designated by a State, 
may bring, in an appropriate United States district court, 
a civil action against a transit tobacco seller, carrier, or 
tobacco supplier that violates this Act—
(1) to enjoin such violation; 
(2) to recover from a transit tobacco seller any 
taxes due to the State or to any of its political sub-
divisions under an applicable State or local law re-
lating to tobacco products sold or delivered into or 
within the State by the transit tobacco seller; and 
(3) to obtain such other equitable or legal relief 
as the court, in its discretion, deems appropriate, in-
cluding the prohibitions described in section 8(c) and 
a temporary or permanent injunction prohibiting 
carriers from delivering tobacco products to a transit 
tobacco seller that has violated any provision of this 
Act, or prohibiting tobacco product manufacturers, 
wholesalers, distributors, or retailers from selling to-
bacco products to a transit tobacco seller that vio-
lates any provision of this Act.
(b) NOTICE.—The State shall serve prior written no-
tice of any civil action brought under this section upon 
the Secretary of the Treasury and provide the Secretary 
with a copy of the complaint, except in any case where 
such prior notice is not feasible, in which case the State 
shall serve such notice immediately upon instituting such 
action, and the State shall notify the Secretary of the out-
come or other resolution of any such civil actions. 
(c) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary of the Treasury 
shall promptly make freely available to the public 
(including through the Internet) information concerning 
all actions under this section or section 9, including the 
names of all parties to each action and the outcomes of 
all such actions. 
SEC. 11. RELATION TO OTHER LAWS. 
(a) MORE STRINGENT LAWS NOT AFFECTED.—
Nothing in this Act may be construed to limit or interfere 
with any other Federal, State, or local law that place addi-
tional, or more stringent, restrictions or penalties on tran-
sit tobacco sales. 
(b) EFFECT ON COORDINATED LAW ENFORCEMENT 
EFFORTS.—Nothing in this chapter may be construed to 
inhibit or otherwise affect any coordinated law enforce-
ment effort by one or more States or other jurisdictions, 
through interstate compact or otherwise, that—
(1) provides for the administration of tobacco 
product tax laws or laws pertaining to transit to-
bacco sales; 
(2) provides for the seizure of tobacco products 
or other property related to a violation of such laws; 
or 
(3) establishes cooperative programs for the ad-
ministration of such laws. 
(c) BUSINESS ENTITIES NOT SUBJECT TO LIABIL-
ITY.—This Act does not create any new Federal require-
ments or potential liability of any kind for business enti-
ties providing communication technologies (e.g., phone 
companies or internet service providers), computer soft-
ware or related services, or credit or debit card services; 
nor does this Act limit, amend, or expand any existing 
Federal requirements or potential liability for any such en-
tities, except to the extent that those entities are Transit 
Sellers, Carriers, or Tobacco Suppliers. 
SEC. 12. SEVERABILITY. 
If any provision of this Act (or the application of that 
provision to particular persons or circumstances) is held 
invalid, the remainder of this Act (or the application of 
that provision to other persons or circumstances) shall not 
be affected.
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