,i #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #bdaa ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,april #cj1 #bjai ,ms4 ,de,gette 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,stewart1 ,mr4 ,cohen1 ,ms4 ,herrera ,beutler1 ,mr4 ,payne1 ,mr4 ,flores1 and ,mr4 ,wittman7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,energy and ,commerce ,a ,,bill ,to prohibit the sale of tobacco products to individuals under the age of #ba4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,tobacco to #ba ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,tobacco use has caused more than #bj1hjj1jjj premature deaths in the ,united ,states since the ,surgeon ,general's first report on smoking in #aifd4 7#b7 ,the #aifd ,surgeon ,general's report linked cigarette smoking to cancer1 and since then1 other tobacco products1 including cigars1 cigarillos1 roll-your-own products1 and smokeless tobacco have been causally linked to cancer4 7#c7 ,while substantial gains have been made since #aifd1 tobacco use remains the leading preventable cause of death in the ,united ,states1 responsible for more than #dhj1jjj premature deaths each year4 7#d7 ,tobacco use costs the ,united ,states approximately #age1jjj1jjj1jjj in direct medical costs and #aef1jjj1jjj1jjj in lost productivity every year4 7#e7 ,more than #cd1jjj1jjj people in the ,united ,states still smoke1 and the tobacco industry continues to challenge tobacco control measures in court1 manipulate products to evade existing regulations1 introduce new and dangerous tobacco products1 and spend billions of dollars on marketing to deceive the public and addict more children4 7#f7 ,an estimated #e1fjj1jjj youth aged #ag and under are projected to die prematurely from a tobacco-related illness if prevalence rates do not change4 7#g7 ,each day in the ,united ,states1 more than #b1jjj youth under #ah years of age smoke their first cigarette4 7#h7 ,use of tobacco products in any form is not safe1 especially during adolescence1 as such use can lead to nicotine dependence and subsequent tobacco-related diseases and death4 7#i7 ,adolescents are especially vulnerable to the effects of nicotine and nicotine addiction and appear to show signs of nicotine addiction at lower levels of exposure compared to adults4 7#aj7 ,nicotine exposure during adolescence may have lasting adverse consequences on brain development4 ,according to the ,surgeon ,general1 the use of products containing nicotine in any form among youth1 including in electronic cigarettes1 is unsafe4 7#aa7 ,the likelihood of developing smoking-related cancers increases with duration of smoking4 ,therefore1 smokers that start at younger ages and continue to smoke are at higher risk for tobacco-related disease and death4 7#ab7 ,national data show that about #id percent of adult smokers begin smoking before they turn #ba4 ,the ages of #ah to #ba are a critical period when many smokers move from experimental smoking to regular1 daily use4 7#ac7 ,three-quarters of adults in the ,united ,states favor raising the tobacco age of sale to #ba years1 including #g in #aj smokers4 7#ad7 ,in #bjah1 the ,surgeon ,general issued an advisory on the electronic cigarette epidemic among youth4 ,electronic cigarette use among high school students in the ,united ,states increased #gh percent from #bjag to #bjah4 ,in #bjah1 more than #c1fjj1jjj youth1 including #a in #e high school students and #a in #bj middle school students used electronic cigarettes4 7#ae7 ,electronic cigarettes are the most commonly used tobacco product among youth4 ,according to the ,surgeon ,general's #bjaf report on electronic cigarettes1 electronic cigarette use is strongly associated with the use of other tobacco products among youth and young adults4 7#af7 ,the #bjae report of the ,national ,academy of ,medicine entitled1 ,public ,health ,implications of ,raising the ,minimum ,age of ,legal ,access to ,tobacco ,products1 concluded that raising the minimum legal age of sale of tobacco products nationwide will reduce tobacco initiation1 particularly among adolescents aged #ae to #ag1 and will improve health across the lifespan and save lives4 ,specifically1 the report said that raising the minimum legal age of sale of tobacco products nationwide to age #ba would1 over time1 lead to a #ab-percent decrease in smoking prevalence4 7#ag7 ,the ,national ,academy of ,medicine report also predicts that raising the minimum legal age of sale of tobacco products nationwide to age #ba would result in #bbc1jjj fewer premature deaths1 #de1jjj fewer deaths from lung cancer1 and #d1bjj1jjj fewer years of life lost for those born between #bjjj and #bjai4 ,in addition1 the report concluded that raising the minimum legal age of sale would result in near immediate reductions in preterm birth1 low birth weight1 and sudden infant death syndrome4 7#ah7 ,regulating the retail environment1 actively enforcing laws1 and educating retailers are strategies that ,federal1 ,state1 and local governments can take to restrict the availability of tobacco products to youth4 7#ai7 ,twelve ,states1 the ,district of ,columbia1 and more than #aaj localities in an additional #ae ,states have raised the minimum legal tobacco sale age to #ba4 #c4 ,prohibition and enforcement 7a7 ,in general ,notwithstanding any other provision of law1 including any ,federal regulation1 it shall be unlawful to sell a tobacco product to anyone under the age of #ba or to sell a tobacco product to anyone under #cj without verification of age by means of photo identification4 7b7 ,authority ,to enforce 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services 7referred to in this section as the ,secretary7 is authorized to enforce the prohibition under subsection 7a7 and shall take necessary action to enforce such prohibition1 including1 as appropriate1 conducting undercover compliance checks1 performing retailer inspections1 initiating enforcement actions for noncompliance1 and taking any other measures appropriate to help ensure nationwide compliance with such prohibition4 7#b7 ,guidance ,the ,secretary may issue guidance concerning the responsibility of persons subject to subsection 7a7 to ensure compliance with such prohibition4 7c7 ,penalties 7#a7 ,in general ,in the case of a violation of subsection 7a71 the ,secretary may apply the penalties under section #ajc7q77#b7 of the ,family ,smoking ,prevention and ,tobacco ,control ,act 7,public ,law #aaa-ca71 as though such subsection 7a7 were a regulation promulgated under paragraph 7#a7 of section #ijf7;d7 of the ,federal ,food1 ,drug1 and ,cosmetic ,act 7#ba ,u4,s4,c4 #chg;f7d771 notwithstanding paragraph 7#c77;,a77ii7 of such section #ijf7;d74 7#b7 ,repeated violations ,in the case of repeated violations of subsection 7a71 alone or combined with violations of other regulations promulgated under #ijf7;d77#a7 of the ,federal ,food1 ,drug1 and ,cosmetic ,act1 the ,secretary may impose a penalty under section #cjc7;f77#h7 of such ,act 7#ba ,u4,s4,c4 #ccc7;f77#h771 as though subsection 7a7 were a regulation promulgated under paragraph 7#a7 of section #ijf7;d7 of the ,federal ,food1 ,drug1 and ,cosmetic ,act1 notwithstanding paragraph 7#c77;,a77ii7 of such section #ijf7;d74 7d7 ,definition ,in this section1 the term tobacco product has the meaning given such term in section #bja7rr7 of the ,federal ,food1 ,drug1 and ,cosmetic ,act 7#ba ,u4,s4,c4 #cba7rr774 7e7 ,effective date ,this section shall take effect on ,january #a1 #bjbj4 7f7 ,rule of construction ,nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent a ,state or local governmental entity from establishing1 enforcing1 or maintaining a law with respect to sales of tobacco to individuals below a minimum age1 provided that such ,state or local law is in addition to1 or more stringent than1 ,federal law4 7g7 ,application ,the prohibition under subsection 7a7 applies only to a manufacturer1 distributor1 retailer1 third-party marketplace1 or other commercial entity that sells tobacco products4