A state lawmaker has proposed a bill aimed at restricting the sale and use of e-cigarettes in Indianapolis, according to the Daily Herald.
The legislation, drafted and submitted by State Representative Ed Clere, includes imposing cigarette taxes on the electronic devices.
Stores carrying e-cigarettes will also have to acquire special licenses to sell them to customers. Under this requirement, vape shops will be subjected to the same inspections conducted by the Indiana Alcohol & Tobacco Commission on establishments that sell real cigarettes.
Clere noted that the bill was drafted to regulate the number of e-cigarette stores operating in the state. Due to the increasing number of the shops, the electronic cigarette devices are becoming more accessible to people.
"These shops are springing up all over the state and flying under the radar," the politician said during a news conference.
In addition to taxes and licenses, Clere's legislation calls on the local government to include e-cigarettes as part of the state's smoking ban law.
It will also require manufacturers to modify the devices' packaging to prevent children from accidentally opening the containers of the e-cigarettes and exposing them to hazardous chemicals.
Brianna Herndon, the spokesperson for the anti-smoking organization Tobacco Free Indiana, supported Clere's legislation. She said the group believes the new regulation will be an important step in protecting the youth from the dangers of cigarette smoking and lowering the cases of nicotine addiction.
She also condemned e-cigarette makers for releasing flavors such as bubble gum and cotton candy. Herndon noted that these flavors may entice children into using e-cigarettes.
"These are the kinds of flavors that kids like to eat, and I think everyone can agree that e-cigarettes have no business being in the hands of minors," she said in a statement.
This isn't the first time an official from Indiana made a move towards regulating the use of e-cigarettes.
In August of last year, Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller co-authored a letter addressed to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The letter, which was signed by other attorney generals, called on the government agency to impose stricter laws on the e-cigarettes.
Zoeller explained that these devices can be used on illegal substances such as marijuana by substituting their contents with a liquid form of the drug, the State House File reported.
