Here's the proposed ordinance. Can you identify the many inaccurate statements in the findings (i.e. WHEREAS) section?
Legislative Matter
TITLE
ORDINANCE CREATING SECTION 21-50 OF THE CODE OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, PROHIBITING THE SALE OF FLAVORED
tobacco PRODUCTS; AMENDING CHAPTER 8CC OF THE CODE PROVIDING CIVIL PENALTIES; PROVIDING SEVERABILITY, INCLUSION IN THE CODE, AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE
BODY
WHEREAS, flavored tobacco products have become increasingly common in the U.S.; and
WHEREAS, these products, containing flavors like vanilla, orange, chocolate, cherry and coffee, are especially attractive to youth; and
WHEREAS, they are widely considered to be “starter” products, establishing smoking habits that can lead to a lifetime of addiction; and
WHEREAS, almost 90 percent of adult smokers began smoking as teenagers, according to the Florida Department of Health fact sheet on candy-flavored tobacco, a copy of which is attached and incorporated by reference; and
WHEREAS, like all tobacco products, flavored tobacco products have serious health risks and are not considered safe by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA); and
WHEREAS, in 2004, 22.8 percent of 17-year-old smokers reported using flavored cigarettes over the past month, as compared to 6.7 percent of smokers over the age of 25, according to the FDA; and
WHEREAS, a poll conducted in March 2008 found that one in five youngsters between the ages of 12 and 17 had seen flavored tobacco products or ads, while only one in ten adults reported having seen them; and
WHEREAS, according to one study of youth smokers between the ages of 13 and 18, 52 percent of smokers who had heard of flavored cigarettes reported an interest in trying them, and nearly 60 percent thought that flavored cigarettes would taste better than regular cigarettes; and
WHEREAS, studies of youth expectations around other flavored tobacco products, such as bidis and hookahs, have found that young smokers report choosing flavored products over cigarettes because they “taste better” and are perceived to be “safer”; and
WHEREAS, tobacco industry documents reveal patterns of designing flavored cigarettes to target youth, according to the FDA; and
WHEREAS, all tobacco products, including flavored tobacco products, are equally addictive and carry the same health risks as regular tobacco products; and
WHEREAS, an estimated 443,000 Americans die prematurely each year due to smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke; and
WHEREAS, forty-one state attorneys general sued a tobacco company selling flavored cigarettes, arguing that it was violating the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement by targeting youth; and
WHEREAS, the settlement of that litigation included an agreement that the tobacco company stop marketing flavored cigarettes; and
WHEREAS, in 2009, Congress passed H.R. 1256, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-31), which, among other provisions, prohibited the manufacture and sale of flavored cigarettes; and
WHEREAS, while the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act prohibits flavored cigarettes, no comparable federal prohibition exists for flavored non-cigarette tobacco products; and
WHEREAS, a number of local governments in Florida have passed resolutions urging tobacco retailers to stop the sale and marketing of flavored tobacco products; and
WHEREAS, in December, 2011, the City Commission of the City of Miami Gardens passed Resolution No. 2011-199-1592 and in February, 2012, the City Commission of the City of Opa-locka passed Resolution No. 12-8344, copies of which are attached and incorporated by reference; and
WHEREAS, local jurisdictions such as New York City, Providence, Rhode Island, and Santa Clara County, California have passed legislation imposing restrictions on the sale of flavored non-cigarette tobacco products; and
WHEREAS, the authority of state and local governments to restrict the sale of these products has been upheld in federal court,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA:
Section 1. Section 21-50 of the Code of Miami-Dade County, Florida, is hereby created to read as follows:
Sec. 21-50. Sale of flavored tobacco products prohibited.
(a) Purpose and intent. The purpose and intent of this ordinance is to protect public health and welfare by reducing the appeal of tobacco to minors and reducing the likelihood that minors will become tobacco users later in life.
(b) Application. This section shall be applicable in incorporated and unincorporated areas of Miami-Dade County, with the enforcement of the provision of this section in the unincorporated area being the responsibility of Miami-Dade County and in the incorporated area being the responsibility of the municipalities.
(c) Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following terms apply:
(1) “Cigarette” means (1) any roll made or used for smoking made wholly or in part of tobacco or any other substance wrapped in paper or in any other substance not containing tobacco, and (2) any roll made or used for smoking made wholly or in part of tobacco wrapped in any substance containing tobacco which, because of its appearance, the type of tobacco used in the filler, or its packaging and labeling, is likely to be offered to, or purchased by, consumers as a cigarette.
(2) “Characterizing flavor” means a distinguishable taste or aroma, other than the taste or aroma of tobacco, menthol, mint or wintergreen, imparted either prior to or during consumption of a tobacco product or component part thereof, including, but not limited to, tastes or aromas relating to any fruit, chocolate, vanilla, honey, candy, cocoa, dessert, alcoholic beverage, herb or spice; provided, however, that no tobacco product shall be determined to have a characterizing flavor solely because of the use of additives or flavorings or the provision of ingredient information.
(3) “Component part” means any element of a tobacco product, including, but not limited to, the tobacco, filter and paper, but not including any constituent.
(4) “Constituent” means any ingredient, substance, chemical or compound, other than tobacco, water or reconstituted tobacco sheet that is added by the manufacturer to a tobacco product during the processing, manufacture or packing of the tobacco product. Such term shall include a smoke constituent.
(5) “Flavored tobacco product” means any tobacco product or any component part thereof that contains a constituent that imparts a characterizing flavor. A public statement or claim made or disseminated by the manufacturer of a tobacco product, or by any person authorized or permitted by the manufacturer to make or disseminate public statements concerning such tobacco product, that such tobacco product has or produces a characterizing flavor shall constitute presumptive evidence that the tobacco product is a flavored tobacco product.
(6) “Smoke constituent” means any chemical or chemical compound in mainstream or sidestream tobacco smoke that either transfers from any component of the tobacco product to the smoke or that is formed by the combustion or hearing of tobacco, additives or other component of the tobacco product.
(7) “Tobacco product” means any substance which contains tobacco, including, but not limited to, cigars and chewing tobacco; provided, however, that such term shall not include cigarettes.
(d) Sale of flavored tobacco products prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or offer for sale any flavored tobacco product.
(e) Penalty. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be punished by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00).
Section 2. Section 8CC-10 of the Code of Miami-Dade County, Florida, is hereby amended to read as follows:1
Sec. 8CC-10. Schedule of civil penalties.
The following table shows the sections of this Code, as they may be amended from time to time, which may be enforced pursuant to the provisions of this chapter; and the dollar amount of civil penalty for the violation of these sections as they may be amended.
* * *
Code Section Description of Violation Civil Penalty
* * *
>>21-50 Sale of flavored tobacco $500.00
product<<
Section 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or provision of this ordinance is held invalid, the remainder of this ordinance shall not be affected by such invalidity.
Section 4. It is the intention of the Board of County Commissioners, and it is hereby ordained that the provisions of this ordinance, including any sunset provision, shall become and be made a part of the Code of Miami-Dade County, Florida. The sections of this ordinance may be renumbered or relettered to accomplish such intention, and the word "ordinance" may be changed to "section," "article," or other appropriate word.
Section 5. This ordinance shall become effective ten (10) days after the date of enactment unless vetoed by the Mayor, and if vetoed, shall become effective only upon an override by this Board.
