An Act To Require Cigarettes Sold in Maine To Be Fire-safe
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 0104
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: COWGER, GERZOFSKY, MILLER, RECTOR, TWOMEY
Amends: 25 MRSA §2466

Legislative Document 
No. 104 
H.P.80 
House of Representatives, January 11,2005 
An Act To Require Cigarettes Sold in Maine To Be Fire-safe 
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representati ve RINES of Wiscasset. 
Cosponsored by Senator COWGER of Kennebec and 
!rJ~ 
m.7Jltt£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: GERZOFSKY of Brunswick, MILLER of Somerville, RECTOR of 
Thomaston, TWOMEY of Biddeford, Senator: SA V AGE of Knox. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 22 MRS A §1555-E is enacted to read: 
§1555-E. 
Fire-safe cigarettes 
1. 
Prohibition. 
To 
the extent not preempted by federal 
law, a person may not sell cigarettes on or after January 1, 2006 
unless the cigarettes meet the standards for fire safe cigarettes 
established by the State Fire Marshal under Title 25, 
section 
2. 
Civil fines. 
The 
following minimum civil fines 
are 
assessed for the following civil violations in actions brought by 
the Attorney General: 
A. 
For a wholesaler who knowingly sells cigarettes that are 
not fire-safe, $10,000 for each sale; 
B. 
For 
a 
retailer 
who 
sells 
or 
fewer 
cartons 
o[ 
cigarettes that are not fire-safe, $500; 
C. 
For 
a 
retailer 
who 
sells 
more 
than 
cartons 
of 
cigarettes that are not fire-safe, $1,000; and 
D. 
For a manufacturer who knowingly misrepresents that that 
manufacturer's cigarettes are fire-safe, 
$10,000 for each 
misrepresentation. 
Sec. 2. 25 MRSA §2466 is enacted to read: 
§2466. 
Fire-safe cigarette standards 
1. 
Standards. 
The State Fire Marshal shall adopt standards 
for the sale of fire-safe cigarettes. 
The standards must ensure: 
A. 
That lit cigarettes stop burning within a specified time 
period if not smoked; or 
B. 
That cigarettes meet performance standards to limit the 
risk that lit cigarettes will ignite upholstered furniture. 
2. 
Health risk assessment. 
In adopting standards under 
this section, the State Fire Marshal shall cooperate and consult 
with the Department of Health and Human Services to consider 
whether fire-safe cigarettes manufactured in accordance with the 
fire safety standards under subsection 1 may reasonably result in 
increased health risks to consumers. 
3. 
Cigare~e Fire Safety Fund: established. 
The Cigarette 
Fire Safety Fund is established in the Department of Public 
Safety 
as 
a 
nonlapsing 
dedicated 
account. 
All 
civil 
fines 
collected under Title 22, section 1555-E, subsection 2 must be 
transferred by the Treasurer of State to the Cigarette Fire 
Safety Fund for use by the department and the State Fire Marshal 
for fire safety and prevention programs. 
4. 
Rules. 
The 
State 
Fire 
Marshal 
may 
adopt 
routine 
technical 
rules 
in 
accordance 
with 
Title 
5, 
chapter 
375, 
subchapter 2-A to ensure that the standards under subsection 1 
are in place no later than January 1, 2006. 
SUMMARY 
This bill provides that, beginning January 1, 
2006, 
only 
cigarettes that meet the standards of fire-safe cigarettes as 
established by the State Fire Marshal may be offered for sale in 
this State.