Title: SCOTT Act of 2019
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Stopping Consumption of Tobacco by Teens Act of 2019 or the SCOTT Act of 2019
This bill prohibits the sale or distribution of a tobacco product to any person under 21 years of age. The bill also establishes age verification requirements for remote sales (including online sales) of vaping products such as e-cigarettes.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2084 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2084

To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to raise the minimum 
 age restriction with respect to the sale of tobacco products, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 4, 2019

  Mr. Aderholt (for himself and Mr. Vargas) introduced the following 
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to raise the minimum 
 age restriction with respect to the sale of tobacco products, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Stopping Consumption of Tobacco by 
Teens Act of 2019'' or the ``SCOTT Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. MINIMUM AGE RESTRICTIONS FOR SALE OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS.

    (a) Minimum Age Restrictions.--Section 906(d)(3) of the Federal 
Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 387f(d)(3)) is amended--
            (1) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:
                    ``(A) Face-to-face transactions.--No restrictions 
                under paragraph (1) may prohibit the sale of any 
                tobacco product in face-to-face transactions by a 
                specific category of retail outlets.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(C) Minimum age restrictions.--
                            ``(i) Restriction.--It shall be unlawful to 
                        sell or distribute a tobacco product to any 
                        person younger than 21 years of age.
                            ``(ii) Enforcement.--The Secretary of 
                        Health and Human Services is authorized to 
                        enforce the prohibition under clause (i) and 
                        shall take necessary action to enforce such 
                        prohibition, including, as appropriate--
                                    ``(I) conducting undercover 
                                compliance checks, performing retailer 
                                inspections, initiating enforcement 
                                actions for noncompliance, and taking 
                                any other measures appropriate to help 
                                ensure nationwide compliance with such 
                                prohibition; and
                                    ``(II) establishing requirements 
                                that retailers check identification to 
                                ensure compliance with clause (i) 
                                (including increasing the minimum age 
                                for which the checking of such 
                                identification is not required, which 
                                shall be greater than the minimum age 
                                under clause (i)) or issuing guidance 
                                concerning the responsibility of 
                                retailers to ensure such compliance.
                            ``(iii) Regulations.--Not later than 2 
                        years after the date of the enactment of the 
                        SCOTT Act of 2019, the Secretary shall revise 
                        the regulations issued under paragraph (1) to 
                        implement and enforce clauses (i) and (ii).''.
    (b) Prohibition Against Remote Retail Sales.--Section 906(d)(4) of 
the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 387f(d)(4)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(C) Vapor products.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Not later than 2 years 
                        after the date of the enactment of the SCOTT 
                        Act of 2019, the Secretary shall issue 
                        regulations or revise the regulations issued 
                        under clause (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (A) 
                        to require age verification with respect to 
                        remote sales of vapor products.
                            ``(ii) Content.--Such regulations shall, at 
                        a minimum, provide--
                                    ``(I) that a delivery seller of 
                                vapor products--
                                            ``(aa) shall not sell, 
                                        deliver, or cause to be 
                                        delivered any vapor products to 
                                        a person under the minimum age 
                                        required for the legal sale or 
                                        purchase of vapor products, as 
                                        determined by the applicable 
                                        law at the place of delivery;
                                            ``(bb) shall not accept a 
                                        delivery sale order from a 
                                        person without--

                                                    ``(AA) obtaining 
                                                the full name, birth 
                                                date, and residential 
                                                address of that person; 
                                                and

                                                    ``(BB) verifying 
                                                the information 
                                                provided in 
                                                subparagraph (A), 
                                                through the use of a 
                                                commercially available 
                                                database or aggregate 
                                                of databases, 
                                                consisting primarily of 
                                                data from government 
                                                sources, that are 
                                                regularly used by 
                                                government and 
                                                businesses for the 
                                                purpose of age and 
                                                identity verification 
                                                and authentication, to 
                                                ensure that the 
                                                purchaser is at least 
                                                the minimum age 
                                                required for the legal 
                                                sale or purchase of 
                                                vapor products, as 
                                                determined by the 
                                                applicable law at the 
                                                place of delivery; and

                                            ``(cc) shall not make any 
                                        such delivery without first 
                                        obtaining, at the place of 
                                        delivery, the signature of a 
                                        person who is not younger than 
                                        the minimum age described in 
                                        item (aa);
                                    ``(II) that no database being used 
                                for age and identity verification 
                                pursuant to subclause (I)(bb)(BB) shall 
                                be in the possession or under the 
                                control of the delivery seller, or be 
                                subject to any changes or 
                                supplementation by the delivery seller; 
                                and
                                    ``(III) for definitions of the 
                                terms `delivery sale', `delivery 
                                seller', `online marketplace', and 
                                `vapor products'.
                            ``(iii) Definitions.--To the extent the 
                        Secretary determines is appropriate and 
                        practicable, in issuing regulations referred to 
                        in clause (ii)(III), the Secretary shall define 
                        the terms specified in such clause consistent 
                        with the following definitions:
                                    ``(I) The term `delivery sale' 
                                means a sale of vapor products in 
                                which--
                                            ``(aa) the consumer submits 
                                        the order for the sale by means 
                                        of a telephone or other method 
                                        of voice transmission, the mail 
                                        or common carrier, or the 
                                        Internet or other online 
                                        service, or the seller is 
                                        otherwise not in the physical 
                                        presence of the buyer when the 
                                        request for purchase or order 
                                        is made; or
                                            ``(bb) the vapor products 
                                        are delivered to the buyer by 
                                        common carrier, private 
                                        delivery service, or other 
                                        method of remote delivery, or 
                                        the seller is not in the 
                                        physical presence of the buyer 
                                        when the buyer obtains 
                                        possession of the vapor 
                                        products.
                                    ``(II) The term `delivery seller' 
                                means a person who makes a delivery 
                                sale, or provides an online marketplace 
                                to facilitate a delivery sale.
                                    ``(III) The term `online 
                                marketplace' means an online portal or 
                                other digital or similar platform that 
                                facilitates the sale of products to 
                                consumers, through retail sale, 
                                auction, or similar transactions.
                                    ``(IV) The term `vapor product'--
                                            ``(aa) means any non-
                                        combustible product that 
                                        employs a heating element, 
                                        power source, electronic 
                                        circuit, or other electronic, 
                                        chemical, or mechanical means, 
                                        regardless of shape or size, to 
                                        produce vapor from nicotine in 
                                        a solution or other form;
                                            ``(bb) includes any 
                                        electronic cigarette, 
                                        electronic cigar, electronic 
                                        cigarillo, electronic pipe, or 
                                        similar product or device, and 
                                        any vapor cartridge or other 
                                        container of nicotine in a 
                                        solution or other form; and
                                            ``(cc) does not include a 
                                        drug or device.''.
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