Vote Alert: Vote NO on H.R. 2339
•VOTE ALERT•
Vote NO on H.R. 2339
The R Street Institute urges all members to vote no on H.R. 2339, the Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act of 2019. While we recognize the importance of preventing youth from using tobacco products, this bill would have a number of unintended consequences that run counter to public health goals and may result in an overcriminalization crisis
- Prohibitions will lead to overcriminalization. H.R. 2339 would ban all tobacco products with a characterizing flavor other than tobacco—including traditional cigarettes, vapor products and smokeless tobacco. History has proven that banning a product with such a large market will cause an illicit market to develop. This will increase individuals’ negative interactions with law enforcement and also has serious implications for plea bargaining and probation and parole violations. While H.R. 2339’s proponents claim that the bill will not criminalize mere possession of illicit products, there is no way to prevent downstream negative criminal justice consequences unless Congress preempts state laws criminalizing illicit tobacco activity.
- Flavor prohibition will disproportionately affect people of color.Menthol cigarettes, in particular, are disproportionately used among people of color, who comprise 30 percent of the menthol market. Federal and state lawmakers have recently made great strides by enacting reforms to reduce the numerous and severe criminal justice consequences for low-level offenses. H.R. 2339 would be a major step backward in criminal justice reform efforts, and sadly, the impacts of overcriminalization will be felt most severely by people of color and other marginalized communities.
- Significant criminal sentencing consequences.The bill amends Section 387g(a)(1) of the FDA Act. Violations of this law would be subject to criminal arrest, prosecution and imprisonment for up to a year for each occurrence. It also amends The Federal Cigarette Contraband Trafficking Act (CCTA), which treats cigarette smuggling across state lines as a felony subject to up to five years of imprisonment, and The Federal Jenkins Act which punishes knowing violations with up to three years in prison. Unlicensed distribution of tobacco products will also trigger the laws of all fifty states, most of which treat illegal distribution of tobacco products as a crime.
- E-cigarettes as a harm reduction and smoking cessation tool: Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and is responsible for more than 480,000 deaths annually in the United States. While not risk-free, e-cigarettes are at least 95 percent less harmful than combustible cigarettes according to the most widely accepted research. H.R. 2339 will limit the potential for these safer products to reduce the burden of smoking-related diseases for our populace and healthcare system.
- Flavors help smokers transition away from combustible cigarettes. The availability of non-tobacco flavors also assists smokers with the transition away from combustible cigarettes. The International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Healthreports that limitations in flavor choices negatively impact the potential for smokers to move away from combustible cigarettes. About 40 percent of former and current adult smokers predict that removing their ability to choose flavors would make them less likely to remain abstinent or attempt to quit.
- Unnecessary because of 21-to-purchase law. The aim of H.R. 2339 is to address the youth tobacco epidemic. However, Congress has already addressed the issue of youth use by voting and approving a measure to raise the age of purchase of all tobacco products to 21 in the 2019 year-end spending bill. While it is too soon to evaluate the impact of nationwide 21-to-purchase requirements, evidence from other contexts suggests that it will be highly effective at decreasing youth tobacco use. In light of this new law, drastic measures such as those embodied in H.R. 2339 are unwarranted.
For these reasons and more, we hope all members will join us in rejecting H.R. 2339. For more from R Street on tobacco harm reduction and criminal justice reform, see the following resources:
R Street Letter to the House of Representatives re: HR 2339
Op-ed: How ‘Trickle-Down Justice’ Adds More Hurdles for Returning Citizens
Op-ed: How the FDA’s Proposed Menthols Ban Could Harm Black Communities
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Caroline Kitchens
Director of Government Affairs
R Street Institute
