S 10449 NY

0likes☆Favorite🔕SubscribeShare

Skip to main content

New York State Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie

--> --> -->

Assembly Members

Legislative Info

Public Hearings

Speaker's Press

Assembly Reports

Committees & More

Bill Search Home Laws Legislative Calendar Public Hearing Schedule Assembly Calendars Assembly Committee Agenda Javascript must be enabled to properly view this page.

Bill No.: Summary Actions Committee&nbspVotes Floor&nbspVotes Memo Text LFIN Chamber&nbspVideo/Transcript S10449 Summary: BILL NO S10449 &nbsp SAME AS No Same As &nbsp SPONSOR BOTTCHER &nbsp COSPNSR BROUK, COMRIE, FAHY, FERNANDEZ, JACKSON, KRUEGER, MARTINEZ, MAYER, MYRIE, PALUMBO, RHOADS, WEBB, WEBER &nbsp MLTSPNSR &nbsp Amd §§1399-aa, 1399-ee, 1399-ff, 1399-gg, 1399-hh, 1399-ii, 1399-ii-1, 1399-ll & 1399-mm-1, Pub Health L; amd §1183, Tax L &nbsp Prohibits the keeping of inventory, storage, warehouse, processing, packaging, shipping or distributing of flavored vapor products near where vapor or tobacco products are sold at retail or wholesale.

Go to top S10449 Text:

STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________

10449

IN SENATE

May 15, 2026 ___________

Introduced by Sens. BOTTCHER, BROUK, COMRIE, FAHY, FERNANDEZ, JACKSON, KRUEGER, MARTINEZ, MAYER, MYRIE, PALUMBO, RHOADS, WEBB, WEBER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health

AN ACT to amend the public health law and the tax law, in relation to prohibiting the storage of flavored vapor products near where vapor or tobacco products are sold at retail or wholesale

The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows:

1 Section 1. Subdivisions 1, 17 and 18 of section 1399-aa of the public 2 health law, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 13 of the laws of 2003, 3 and subdivisions 17 and 18 as added by section 2 of part EE of chapter 4 56 of the laws of 2020, are amended to read as follows: 5 1. "Enforcement officer" means the enforcement officer designated 6 pursuant to article thirteen-E of this chapter to enforce such article 7 and hold hearings pursuant thereto; provided that in a city with a popu- 8 lation of more than one million it shall also mean an officer or employ- 9 ee or any agency of such city that is authorized to enforce any local 10 law of such city related to the regulation of the sale of cigarettes, 11 tobacco products , or vapor products to minors. 12 17. "Vapor products" means any noncombustible liquid or gel, regard- 13 less of the presence of nicotine therein, that is manufactured into a 14 finished product for use in an electronic [ cigarette, including any ] 15 device that delivers vapor which is inhaled, including any refill, 16 cartridge, device, or component thereof, that contains or is intended 17 to be used with such noncombustible liquid or gel. "Vapor product" shall 18 not include any device, or any component thereof, that does not contain 19 such noncombustible liquid or gel, or any product approved by the United 20 States food and drug administration as a drug or medical device, as 21 those terms are defined in the federal food, drug, and cosmetic act, or 22 manufactured and dispensed pursuant to [ title five-A ] article three, 23 four, or five of [ article thirty-three of this chapter ] the cannabis 24 law .

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD05720-06-6

S. 10449 2

1 18. "Vapor products dealer" means a person licensed by the commission- 2 er of taxation and finance to sell vapor products [ in this state ] , or a 3 person or business required to obtain such license . 4 § 1-a. Subdivision 1 of section 1399-aa of the public health law, as 5 amended by chapter 551 of the laws of 2025, is amended to read as 6 follows: 7 1. "Enforcement officer" means the enforcement officer designated 8 pursuant to article thirteen-E of this chapter to enforce such article 9 and hold hearings pursuant thereto; provided that in a city with a popu- 10 lation of more than one million it shall also mean an officer or employ- 11 ee or any agency of such city that is authorized to enforce any local 12 law of such city related to the regulation of the sale of cigarettes, 13 tobacco products , or vapor products to minors, or for the purposes of 14 section thirteen hundred ninety-nine-ee of this article, the office of 15 administrative trials and hearings of such city. 16 § 2. Subdivision 2 and paragraph (f) of subdivision 3 of section 17 1399-ee of the public health law, as amended by section 6 of part EE 18 of chapter 56 of the laws of 2020, are amended to read as follows: 19 2. If the enforcement officer determines after a hearing that a 20 violation of this article has occurred, [ he or she ] or that a state or 21 local health official was denied access to the retail premises of a 22 registered vapor products dealer including all product display and 23 storage areas of such retail premises, for the purpose of evaluating 24 compliance with this article, they shall impose a civil penalty of a 25 minimum of three hundred dollars, but not to exceed one thousand five 26 hundred dollars for a first violation, and a minimum of one thousand 27 dollars, but not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars for each 28 subsequent violation, unless a different penalty is otherwise provided 29 in this article. The enforcement officer shall advise the retail dealer 30 that upon the accumulation of three or more points pursuant to this 31 section the department of taxation and finance shall suspend the deal- 32 er's registration. If the enforcement officer determines after a hearing 33 that a retail dealer was selling tobacco or vapor products while their 34 registration was suspended or permanently revoked pursuant to subdivi- 35 sion three or four of this section, [ he or she ] they shall impose a 36 civil penalty of twenty-five hundred dollars. 37 (f) Surcharge. A [ two ] four hundred [ fifty ] dollar surcharge to be 38 assessed for every violation will be made available to enforcement offi- 39 cers and shall be used solely for compliance checks to be conducted to 40 determine compliance with this section. 41 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 1399-ff of the public health law, as 42 amended by chapter 100 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as 43 follows: 44 1. Where a civil penalty for a particular incident has not been 45 imposed or an enforcement action regarding an alleged violation for a 46 particular incident is not pending under section thirteen hundred nine- 47 ty-nine-ee of this article, a parent or guardian of a person under twen- 48 ty-one years of age to whom tobacco products, herbal cigarettes or 49 [ electronic cigarettes ] vapor products are sold or distributed in 50 violation of this article may submit a complaint to an enforcement offi- 51 cer setting forth the name and address of the alleged violator, the date 52 of the alleged violation, the name and address of the complainant and 53 the person under twenty-one years of age, and a brief statement describ- 54 ing the alleged violation. The enforcement officer shall notify the 55 alleged violator by certified or registered mail, return receipt 56 requested, that a complaint has been submitted, and shall set a date, at

S. 10449 3

1 least fifteen days after the mailing of such notice, for a hearing on 2 the complaint. Such notice shall contain the information submitted by 3 the complainant. 4 § 4. Subdivision 1 of section 1399-gg of the public health law, as 5 amended by chapter 513 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as 6 follows: 7 1. All tobacco cigarettes or vapor products sold or offered for sale 8 by a retail dealer shall be sold or offered for sale in the package, 9 box, carton or other container provided by the manufacturer, importer, 10 or packager which bears all health warnings required by applicable law. 11 § 5. The opening paragraph and subdivisions 2 and 3 of section 1399-hh 12 of the public health law, as amended by section 8 of part EE of chapter 13 56 of the laws of 2020, are amended to read as follows: 14 The commissioner shall develop, plan and implement a comprehensive 15 program to reduce the prevalence of tobacco [ use, ] and vapor product[ , 16 intended or reasonably expected to be used with or for the consumption 17 of nicotine, ] use , particularly among persons less than twenty-one years 18 of age. This program shall include, but not be limited to, support for 19 enforcement of this article. 20 2. The commissioner shall distribute such monies as are made available 21 for such purpose to enforcement officers and, in so doing, consider the 22 number of licensed vapor products dealers or sellers and retail 23 locations registered to sell tobacco products within the jurisdiction of 24 the enforcement officer and the level of proposed activities. For the 25 purposes of this section, "seller" means a person, sole proprietorship, 26 corporation, limited liability company, partnership or other enterprise 27 that distributes, sells or offers to sell, at retail, or exchanges or 28 offers to exchange for any form of consideration, cigarettes, tobacco 29 products, or vapor products. This definition is without regard to the 30 quantity of cigarettes, tobacco products, or vapor products distributed, 31 sold, offered for sale, exchanged, or offered for exchange. 32 3. Monies made available to enforcement officers pursuant to this 33 section shall only be used for local tobacco and vapor product[ , 34 intended or reasonably expected to be used with or for the consumption 35 of nicotine, ] enforcement activities approved by the commissioner. 36 § 6. Subdivision 2 of section 1399-ii of the public health law, as 37 amended by section 12 of part EE of chapter 56 of the laws of 2020, is 38 amended to read as follows: 39 2. The department shall support tobacco and vapor product use 40 prevention and control activities including, but not limited to: 41 (a) Community programs to prevent and reduce tobacco use through local 42 involvement and partnerships; 43 (b) School-based programs to prevent and reduce tobacco use and use of 44 vapor products; 45 (c) Marketing and advertising to discourage tobacco[ , ] and vapor prod- 46 uct [ and liquid nicotine ] use , especially among consumers histor- 47 ically targeted by tobacco and vapor product advertising and manufactur- 48 ers ; 49 (d) Nicotine cessation programs for youth and adults; 50 (e) Special projects to reduce the disparities in smoking prevalence 51 among various populations; 52 (f) Restriction of youth access to tobacco products and vapor 53 products; 54 (g) Surveillance of smoking and vaping rates; and 55 (h) Any other activities determined by the commissioner to be neces- 56 sary to implement the provisions of this section.

S. 10449 4

1 Such programs shall be selected by the commissioner through an appli- 2 cation process which takes into account whether a program utilizes meth- 3 ods recognized as effective in reducing [ nicotine ] tobacco or vapor 4 product use. Eligible applicants may include, but not be limited to, a 5 health care provider, schools, a college or university, a local public 6 health department, a public health organization, a health care provider 7 organization, association or society, municipal corporation, or a 8 professional education organization. 9 § 7. Section 1399-ii-1 of the public health law, as added by section 10 11 of part EE of chapter 56 of the laws of 2020, is amended to read as 11 follows: 12 § 1399-ii-1. [ Electronic cigarette and vaping ] Vapor product 13 prevention, awareness and control program. The commissioner shall, in 14 consultation and collaboration with the commissioner of education, 15 establish and develop [ an electronic cigarette and vaping ] a vapor prod- 16 uct prevention, control and awareness program within the department. 17 Such program shall be designed to educate students, parents and school 18 personnel about the health risks associated with vapor product use and 19 control measures to reduce the prevalence of vaping, particularly among 20 persons less than twenty-one years of age. Such program shall include, 21 but not be limited to, the creation of age-appropriate instructional 22 tools and materials that may be used by all schools, and marketing and 23 advertising materials to discourage [ electronic cigarette ] vapor product 24 use. 25 § 8. Subdivision 6 of section 1399-ll of the public health law, as 26 amended by section 3 of part EE of chapter 56 of the laws of 2020, is 27 amended to read as follows: 28 6. The attorney general may bring an action to recover the civil 29 penalties provided by subdivision five of this section and for such 30 other relief as may be deemed necessary. In addition, the corporation 31 counsel of any political subdivision that imposes a tax on cigarettes or 32 vapor products [ intended or reasonably expected to used with or for the 33 consumption of nicotine ] may bring an action to recover the civil penal- 34 ties provided by subdivision five of this section and for such other 35 relief as may be deemed necessary with respect to any cigarettes or 36 vapor products [ intended or reasonably expected to be used with or for 37 the consumption of nicotine ] shipped, caused to be shipped or trans- 38 ported in violation of this section to any person located within such 39 political subdivision. All civil penalties obtained in any such action 40 shall be retained by the state or political subdivision bringing such 41 action[ , provided that no person shall be required to pay civil penal- 42 ties to both the state and a political subdivision with respect to the 43 same violation of this section ]. 44 § 9. Section 1399-mm-1 of the public health law, as added by section 1 45 of part EE of chapter 56 of the laws of 2020, is amended to read as 46 follows: 47 § 1399-mm-1. Sale of flavored products prohibited. 1. For the purposes 48 of this section "flavored" shall mean any vapor product [ intended or 49 reasonably expected to be used with or for the consumption of nicotine, ] 50 with a [ distinguishable ] taste [ or ] , aroma, or cooling sensation, 51 distinguishable by an ordinary customer, other than the taste or aroma 52 of tobacco, imparted either prior to or during consumption of such prod- 53 uct or a component part thereof, including but not limited to tastes or 54 aromas relating to any fruit, chocolate, vanilla, honey, candy, cocoa, 55 dessert, alcoholic beverage, mint, wintergreen, menthol, herb or spice, 56 or any concept flavor that imparts a taste or aroma that is distinguish-

S. 10449 5

1 able from tobacco flavor but may not relate to any particular known 2 flavor. A vapor product [ intended or reasonably expected to be used with 3 or for the consumption of nicotine, ] shall be presumed to be flavored if 4 a product's retailer, manufacturer, or a manufacturer's agent or employ- 5 ee has made a statement or claim , or other action, directed to consumers 6 or the public, whether expressed or implied, that such product or device 7 has a [ distinguishable ] taste [ or ] , aroma , or cooling sensation, other 8 than the taste [ or ] , aroma , or sensation of tobacco. 9 2. No vapor products dealer, seller or any agent or employee of a 10 vapor products dealer or seller , shall sell or offer for sale [ at retail 11 in the state ] , or exchange or offer for exchange, for any form of 12 consideration, any flavored vapor product [ intended or reasonably 13 expected to be used with or for the consumption of nicotine ] at retail . 14 For the purposes of this section, seller means a person, sole proprie- 15 torship, corporation, limited liability company, partnership or other 16 enterprise that sells or offers to sell, at retail, or exchanges or 17 offers to exchange, for any form of consideration, vapor products 18 through retail sales. This definition is without regard to the quantity 19 of vapor products, sold, offered for sale, exchanged, or offered for 20 exchange. 21 3. No vapor products dealer, seller or wholesaler or any agent or 22 employee of a vapor products dealer, seller, or wholesaler acting in the 23 capacity thereof, shall keep in inventory, store, stow, warehouse, proc- 24 ess, package, ship, or distribute flavored vapor products anywhere in, 25 adjacent to, or accessible to a place of business or premises where 26 vapor products are sold, offered for sale, exchanged, or offered for 27 exchange, for any form of consideration, at retail. 28 4. No vapor products wholesaler or any agent or employee of a vapor 29 products wholesaler acting in the capacity thereof, shall sell, process, 30 package, ship or distribute flavored vapor products to a vapor products 31 dealer or seller, or any agent or employee of a vapor products dealer or 32 seller acting in the capacity thereof, located in the state. Nothing in 33 this section shall prevent a vapor products wholesaler or any agent or 34 employee of a vapor products wholesaler acting in the capacity thereof, 35 from selling, processing, packaging, shipping or distributing flavored 36 vapor products to out-of-state retailers. 37 5. Any vapor products dealer or seller , or any agent or employee of a 38 vapor products dealer or seller , who violates the provisions of this 39 section shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than [ one ] three 40 hundred dollars for each individual package of flavored vapor product 41 [ intended or reasonably expected to be used with or for the consumption 42 of nicotine ] sold or offered for sale, [ provided, however, that with 43 respect to a manufacturer, it shall be an affirmative defense to a find- 44 ing of violation pursuant to this section that such sale ] or [ offer of 45 sale, as applicable, occurred without the knowledge, consent, authori- 46 zation, or involvement, direct ] exchanged or [ indirect, ] offered for 47 exchange, for any form of [ such manufacturer ] consideration, whether 48 through retail or wholesale, or kept in inventory, stored, stowed, ware- 49 housed, processed, packaged, shipped, or distributed anywhere in, or 50 adjacent to, a place of business where vapor or tobacco products are 51 sold, offered for sale, exchanged, or offered for exchange, for any form 52 of consideration, at retail . Violations of the provisions of this 53 section shall be enforced pursuant to [ section ] sections thirteen 54 hundred ninety-nine-ee and thirteen hundred ninety-nine-ff of this arti- 55 cle[ , except ] ; provided, however, that [ any ] violations of the 56 provisions of this section may also be enforced by the commissioner;

S. 10449 6

1 provided, further, however, that any monies obtained in any such 2 enforcement action taken by the commissioner shall be made available to 3 support tobacco and vapor product enforcement programs operating pursu- 4 ant to section thirteen hundred ninety-nine-hh of this article. Any 5 person may submit a complaint to an enforcement officer that a violation 6 of this section has occurred. 7 [ 4. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any vapor 8 products dealer, or any agent or employee of a vapor products dealer, 9 who sells or offers for sale, or who possess with intent to sell or 10 offer for sale, any flavored vapor product intended or reasonably 11 expected to be used with or for the consumption of nicotine that the 12 U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized to legally market as 13 defined under 21 U.S.C. § 387j and that has received a premarket review 14 approval order under 21 U.S.C. § 387j(c) et seq. ] 15 6. Nothing in this section shall be construed to penalize the 16 purchase, use, or possession of a tobacco product or vapor product by 17 any person not engaged as a vapor products dealer, retail dealer, tobac- 18 co or vapor seller, or any agent or employee of a vapor products dealer, 19 retail dealer, or tobacco or vapor seller. 20 § 10. Subdivision (e) of section 1183 of the tax law, as added by 21 section 1 of part UU of chapter 59 of the laws of 2019, is amended to 22 read as follows: 23 (e) (1) If a vapor products [ dealer ] dealer's certificate or registra- 24 tion is suspended, cancelled or revoked and such vapor products dealer 25 sells vapor products through more than one place of business in this 26 state, the vapor products dealer's certificate of registration issued to 27 that place of business, cart, stand, truck or other merchandising 28 device, where such violation occurred, shall be suspended, revoked or 29 cancelled. Provided, however, upon a vapor products dealer's third 30 suspension, cancellation or revocation within a five-year period for any 31 one or more businesses owned or operated by the vapor products dealer, 32 such suspension, cancellation, or revocation of the vapor products deal- 33 er's certificate of registration shall apply to all places of business 34 where [ he or she sells ] they sell vapor products in this state. 35 (2) If a vapor products dealer does not possess a valid certificate of 36 registration, either because it failed to obtain a registration or its 37 registration is suspended or revoked and the commissioner or their 38 designee, pursuant to their authority under this article, attempts to 39 inspect such premises for a violation of this section and such vapor 40 products dealer, including an agent thereof, is found, after notice and 41 opportunity to be heard, to have refused such inspection, such vapor 42 products dealer shall be subject to a penalty of up to four thousand 43 dollars for a first refusal and up to eight thousand dollars for a 44 second or subsequent refusal within three years of a prior refusal. 45 § 11. Section 1183 of the tax law is amended by adding two new subdi- 46 visions (i) and (j) to read as follows: 47 (i) At the time of delivering vapor products to any person, each vapor 48 products dealer shall make a true duplicate invoice showing the date of 49 delivery, the number of packages and number of vapor products contained 50 therein, in each shipment of vapor products delivered, and the items and 51 quantity and wholesale price of each item in each shipment of vapor 52 products delivered, and the name of the purchaser to whom delivery is 53 made, and shall retain such duplicate invoices for a period of three 54 years subject to the use and inspection of the commissioner. Each vapor 55 products dealer shall procure and retain invoices showing the number of 56 packages and number of vapor products contained therein, in each ship-

S. 10449 7

1 ment of vapor products received by them, and the items and quantity and 2 wholesale price of each item in each shipment of vapor products received 3 by them, the date thereof, and the name of the shipper, and shall retain 4 such invoices for a period of three years subject to the use and 5 inspection of the commissioner. The commissioner by regulation may 6 provide that whenever vapor products are shipped into the state, the 7 railroad company, express company, trucking company or other public 8 carrier transporting any shipment thereof shall file with the commis- 9 sioner a copy of the freight bill within ten days after the delivery in 10 the state of each shipment. All vapor products dealers shall maintain 11 and keep for a period of three years such other records of vapor 12 products received, sold or delivered within the state, as may be 13 required by the commissioner. The commissioner is hereby authorized to 14 examine the books, papers, invoices and other records of any person in 15 possession, control or occupancy of any premises where vapor products 16 are placed, stored, sold or offered for sale, and the equipment of any 17 such person pertaining to the sale and delivery of vapor products taxa- 18 ble under this article, as well as the stock of vapor products in any 19 such premises or vehicle. To verify the accuracy of the tax imposed and 20 assessed by this article, each such person is hereby directed and 21 required to give to the commissioner or such commissioner's duly author- 22 ized representatives, the means, facilities and opportunity for such 23 examinations as are herein provided for and required. 24 (j) If a vapor products dealer, including an agent thereof, refuses to 25 comply with the requirements of this section, its registration may be 26 revoked (i) for a period of one year, (ii) for a second such violation 27 within a period of five years, for up to three years, or (iii) for a 28 third or subsequent violation within a period of seven years, for a 29 period up to ten years. A vapor products dealer's registration shall be 30 considered to be revoked pursuant to this subdivision immediately upon 31 such dealer's receipt of written notice of revocation from the commis- 32 sioner. 33 § 12. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, 34 section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent 35 jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair, or 36 invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation 37 to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part thereof 38 directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have 39 been rendered. It is hereby declared to have been the intent of the 40 legislature that this act would have been enacted even if such invalid 41 provisions had not been included herein. 42 § 13. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 43 have become a law; provided, however, that section one-a of this act 44 shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as chapter 551 45 of the laws of 2025 takes effect.

Go to top

Sitemap

Request Information

Directions and Maps