AN ACT to establish fire safety standards for cigarettes to limit fire risksand to make an appropriation therefor:

The People of the State of - - - - - - do enact as follows:

Section 1. Legislative findings and determinations. The legislature hereby findsand declares that fires caused by dropped cigarettes are the leading cause of fire death in the stateas well as a major cause of fires in homes, nursing homes, hotels and hospitals. The legislaturefurther finds that it is technically feasible to produce cigarettes that have a significantly reducedpropensity to ignite upholstered furniture or mattresses. The legislature concurs with thefindings of the federal Technical Study Group (established by Public Law 98-567) on cigarettefire safety which conducted tests of forty-one experimental cigarettes and found that by varyingseveral properties, cigarettes could be produced which reduce the likelihood of ignition: theseproperties include low tobacco density, small tobacco rod circumference, and cigarette paperwrapper with low porosity.The legislature hereby determines that it is within the police powers of the state to protectthe health and safety of the people of - - - - - - - -by establishing fire safety standards forcigarettes sold in this state.

Section 2. Short title. This act shall be known as the "Fire SafeCigarette Act."

Section 3. Fire safety standards for cigarettes and enforcement:

1. When used in this section, the word "cigarette" shall mean any roll forsmoking made wholly or in part of tobacco or of any other substance, irrespective of size orshape and whether or not such tobacco or substance is flavored, adulterated or mixed with anyother ingredient, and the wrapper or cover of which is made of paper or any other ingredientexcept tobacco.
2. The office of the State Fire Marshal shall promulgate fire safety standardsfor cigarettes sold, offered for sale or manufactured in this state within six months after thissection takes effect. Such standards shall insure that cigarettes meet a fire safety performancestandard prescribed by the State Fire Marshal to limit the risk that such cigarettes will igniteupholstered furniture or mattresses. The State Fire Marshal shall employ the "CigaretteExtinction Test Method" as published in Special Publication 851 of the National Institute ofStandards and Technology (U.S. Department of Commerce).
3. Any corporation, partnership, sole proprietor, limited partnership orassociation engaged in the manufacture of cigarettes shall certify in writing prior to any sale thattheir products meet the performance standards prescribed by the State Fire Marshal. Copies ofsuch written certification shall be provided to the State Fire Marshal and to [other appropriatestate agencies that are responsible for licensing the manufacture, distribution and/or sale ofcigarettes].
4. Beginning one year from the date that this section shall take effect, themanufacture, distribution or sale of any cigarette that fails to comply with fire safety performancestandards developed by the State Fire Marshal pursuant to this section, is prohibited. Eachviolation of this section shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed ten thousand dollars.
5. The attorney general of this state may bring an action on behalf of thepeople of the state to restrain further violations of this section and for such other relief as may beappropriate.

Section 4. The sum of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or so muchthereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the office of the State Fire Marshal out ofany moneys in the state treasury in the general fund to defray the expenses of the office includingpersonal services, operations, maintenance and subcontracting with a fire safety laboratory oragency within the United States to develop fire safety performance standards.

Section 5. This act shall take effect on- - - - - - -; except that this act shall not takeeffect if federal fire safety standards for cigarettes are enacted before the day this act takes effect.

4/15/97