[Editor's note: This section takes effect only if a ballot issue is approved by the people at the next regular general election in November 2020. See the editor's note following the article heading.] (1) The general assembly hereby finds and declares that:
Nicotine is a highly addictive and toxic substance;
There has been a significant increase in the use of electronic cigarettes, which heatnicotine, flavorings, and other chemicals to create an aerosol that is inhaled;
Children in middle school and high school have reported using electronic cigarettesat alarming rates, and studies have linked electronic cigarette use among youth to nicotine addiction and cigarette smoking;
The long-term health risks of this use are unknown, but electronic cigarette aerosolcan contain harmful and potentially harmful substances including nicotine, cancer-causing chemicals, heavy metals, flavoring chemicals, ultrafine particles, and volatile organic compounds;
Yet nicotine products are not subject to the same excise tax as cigarettes and tobaccoproducts;
Taxing nicotine products at the wholesale level will increase the total cost, whichmay serve as a deterrent to children and adolescents and in turn prevent and reduce consumption; and
Revenue from the tax can be used toward positive outcomes in children's lives.
(2) Therefore, the general assembly intends to create a tax on nicotine products so that they are taxed in the same manner as tobacco products, including the licensing requirements that facilitate the collection of the tax.
Source: L. 2020: Entire article added, (HB 20-1427), ch. 248, p. 1197, § 18, effective (see editor's note).