[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2643 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2643

  To provide for fire safety standards for cigarettes, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 13, 2004

  Mr. Durbin introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide for fire safety standards for cigarettes, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Cigarette Fire Safety Act of 2004''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Cigarette ignited fires are the leading cause of fire 
        deaths in the United States.
            (2) In 1999 there were 807 deaths from cigarette ignited 
        fires, 2,193 civilian injuries from such fires, and 
        $559,100,000 in property damage caused by such fires.
            (3) Nearly 100 children are killed each year from cigarette 
        related fires.
            (4) For over 20 years former Member of Congress Joseph 
        Moakley worked on behalf of burn victims, firefighters, and 
        every individual who has lost a loved one in a fire. By 
        securing enactment of the Cigarette Safety Act of 1984 and the 
        Fire Safe Cigarette Act of 1990, Joseph Moakley completed the 
        necessary technical work for a cigarette fire safety standard 
        and paved the way for a national standard.
            (5) It is appropriate for the Congress to require by law 
        the establishment of a cigarette fire safety standard for the 
        manufacture and importation of cigarettes.
            (6) A recent study by the Consumer Product Safety 
        Commission found that the cost of the loss of human life and 
        personal property from not having a cigarette fire safety 
        standard is $4,600,000,000 per year.
            (7) It is appropriate that the regulatory expertise of the 
        Consumer Product Safety Commission be used to implement a 
        cigarette fire safety standard.

SEC. 3. CIGARETTE FIRE SAFETY STANDARD.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Requirement for standard.--Not later than 18 months 
        after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission 
        shall, by rule, prescribe one or more fire safety standards for 
        cigarettes that, except as provided in this Act, are 
        substantively the same as the standards set forth by the State 
        of New York in Part 429 of Title 18 of the Official Compilation 
        of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York, as 
        promulgated on December 31, 2003 (in this Act referred to as 
        the ``New York standard''), including the Appendix to such 
        Part.
            (2) Cigarettes with unique characteristics.--In adapting 
        section 4(c) of such Part 429, if the Commission determines 
        that a cigarette, because of its unique or nontraditional 
        characteristics, cannot be tested in accordance with the test 
        method prescribed by the Commission, the manufacturer of such 
        cigarette may propose a test method and performance standard 
        for such cigarette. If the Commission finds the proposed method 
        and standard to be equivalent to the test method and 
        performance standard otherwise established by the Commission, 
        the Commission may approve the method and standard and the 
        manufacturer of such cigarette may employ such test method and 
        performance standard to certify the cigarette pursuant to rules 
        prescribed by this Act.
            (3) Commission.--In this Act, the term ``Commission'' means 
        the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
    (b) Procedure.--
            (1) In general.--The rule under subsection (a), and any 
        modification thereof, shall be prescribed in accordance with 
        section 553 of title 5, United States Code.
            (2) Modifications.--
                    (A) Modification by sponsor.--If the sponsor of the 
                testing methodology used under subsection (a)(2) 
                modifies the testing methodology in any material 
                respect, the sponsor shall notify the Commission of the 
                modification, and the Commission may incorporate the 
                modification in the rule prescribed under subsection 
                (a) if the Commission determines that the modification 
                will enhance a fire safety standard established under 
                subsection (a)(2).
                    (B) Modification by commission.--The Commission may 
                modify the rule prescribed under subsection (a), 
                including the test requirements specified in subsection 
                (a)(2), in whole or in part, only if the Commission 
                determines that compliance with such modification is 
                technically feasible and will enhance a fire safety 
                standard established under that subsection. Any such 
                modification shall not take effect earlier than 3 years 
                after the date on which the rule is first issued.
            (3) Inapplicability of certain laws.--
                    (A) In general.--No Federal law or Executive order, 
                including the laws listed in subparagraph (B) but not 
                including chapters 5, 6, 7, and 8 of title 5, United 
                States Code, commonly referred to as the Administrative 
                Procedures Act, may be construed to apply to the 
                promulgation of the rule required by subsection (a), or 
                a modification of the rule under paragraph (2) of this 
                subsection.
                    (B) Included laws.--The Federal laws referred to in 
                subparagraph (A) include the following:
                            (i) The Consumer Product Safety Act (15 
                        U.S.C. 2051 et seq.).
                            (ii) Chapter 6 of title 5, United States 
                        Code.
                            (iii) The National Environmental Policy Act 
                        of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).
                            (iv) The Small Business Regulatory 
                        Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (Public Law 
                        104-121), and the amendments made by that Act.
    (c) Effective Date.--The Commission shall specify in the rule 
prescribed under subsection (a) the effective date of the rule. The 
effective date may not be later than 24 months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.
    (d) Treatment of Standard.--
            (1) In general.--The fire safety standard promulgated under 
        subsection (a) shall be treated as a consumer product safety 
        standard promulgated under the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 
        U.S.C. 2051 et seq.), except as provided in section 4.
            (2) Treatment of cigarettes.--A cigarette shall be treated 
        as a consumer product under section 3(a)(1)(B) of the Consumer 
        Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2052(a)(1)(B)) for purposes of 
        this Act and for purposes of sections 17 and 18 of the Consumer 
        Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2066, 2067).

SEC. 4. PREEMPTION.

    (a) In General.--This Act, and any cigarette fire safety standard 
established or modified pursuant to section 3, may not be construed to 
preempt or otherwise affect in any way any law or regulation that 
prescribes a fire safety standard for cigarettes--
            (1) set forth by the State of New York in the New York 
        standard; or
            (2) promulgated by any State that is more stringent than 
        the fire safety standard for cigarettes established under this 
        section.
    (b) Private Remedies.--The provisions of section 25 of the Consumer 
Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2074) shall apply with respect to the 
fire safety standard promulgated under section 3(a) of this Act.

SEC. 5. SCOPE OF JURISDICTION OF CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION.

    Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the Commission shall have 
no jurisdiction over tobacco or tobacco products.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Consumer Product Safety Commission for fiscal year 
2005, $2,000,000 for purposes of carrying out this Act.
    (b) Availability.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to subsection (a) 
shall remain available until expended.
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