Regards electronic smoking, tobacco, nicotine, vapor products

hb849_00_IN

As Introduced

136th
General Assembly

Regular
Session
H. B. No. 849

2025-2026

Representatives Plummer, Salvo

To
amend sections 9.681, 3313.751, 3794.05, 5502.01, 5502.13, 5502.14,
5502.99, 5743.01, 5743.54, and 5743.61 and to enact sections

2935.034,

5502.80,
5502.81, 5502.82, 5502.83, 5743.541, 5743.611, 5743.74, and 5743.75
of the Revised Code
regarding
the regulation, registration, licensure, inspection, and enforcement
of electronic smoking, tobacco, nicotine, and vapor products
retailers.

BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section
1.
That
sections 9.681, 3313.751, 3794.05, 5502.01, 5502.13, 5502.14,
5502.99, 5743.01, 5743.54, and 5743.61 be amended and sections

2935.034,

5502.80,
5502.81, 5502.82, 5502.83, 5743.541, 5743.611, 5743.74, and 5743.75
of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec.
9.681.
(A)
As used in this section, "tobacco product" and "alternative
nicotine product" have the same meanings as in section 2927.02
of the Revised Code.

(B)
The regulation of tobacco products and alternative nicotine products
is a matter of general statewide concern that requires statewide
regulation. The state has adopted a comprehensive plan with respect
to all aspects of the giveaway, sale, purchase, distribution,
manufacture, use, possession, licensing, taxation, inspection, and
marketing of tobacco products and alternative nicotine products. No
political subdivision may enact, adopt, renew, maintain, enforce, or
continue in existence any charter provision, ordinance, resolution,
rule, or other measure that conflicts with or preempts any policy of
the state regarding the regulation of tobacco products or alternative
nicotine products, including, without limitation, by:

(1)
Setting or imposing standards, requirements, taxes, fees,
assessments, or charges of any kind regarding tobacco products or
alternative nicotine products that are the same as or similar to,
that conflict with, that are different from, or that are in addition
to, any standard, requirement, tax, fee, assessment, or other charge
established or authorized by state law;

(2)
Lowering or raising an age requirement provided for in state law in
connection with the giveaway, sale, purchase, distribution,
manufacture, use, possession, licensing, taxation, inspection, and
marketing of tobacco products or alternative nicotine products;

(3)
Prohibiting an employee eighteen years of age or older of a
manufacturer, producer, distributor, wholesaler, or retailer of
tobacco products or alternative nicotine products from selling
tobacco products or alternative nicotine products;

(4)
Prohibiting an employee eighteen years of age or older of a
manufacturer, producer, distributor, wholesaler, or retailer of
tobacco products or alternative nicotine products from handling
tobacco products or alternative nicotine products in sealed
containers in connection with manufacturing, storage, warehousing,
placement, stocking, bagging, loading, or unloading.

(C)
In addition to any other relief provided, the court shall award costs
and reasonable attorney's fees to any person, group, or entity that
prevails in a challenge to an ordinance, resolution, regulation,
local law, or other action as being in conflict with this section.

(D)
The general assembly finds and declares that this section is part of
a statewide and comprehensive legislative enactment regulating all
aspects of the giveaway, sale, purchase, distribution, manufacture,
use, possession, licensing, taxation, inspection, and marketing of
tobacco products and alternative nicotine products. The general
assembly further finds and declares that the imposition of tobacco
product and alternative nicotine product regulation by any political
subdivision is a matter of statewide concern and would be
inconsistent with that statewide, comprehensive enactment. Therefore,
regulation of the giveaway, sale, purchase, distribution,
manufacture, use, possession, licensing, taxation, inspection, and
marketing of tobacco products and alternative nicotine products is a
matter of general statewide concern that requires uniform statewide
regulation. By the enactment of this section, it is the intent of the
general assembly to preempt political subdivisions from the
regulation of tobacco products and alternative nicotine products.

(E)
This section does not prohibit a political subdivision from levying a
tax expressly authorized by state law, including the taxes authorized
under Chapters 5739. and 5741. or sections 5743.021, 5743.024,
5743.026, 5743.321, 5743.323, 5743.324, 5743.511, 5743.521, 5743.621,
and 5743.631 of the Revised Code.

(F)
This section does not prohibit a city, local, exempted village, or
joint vocational school district; a STEM school established under
Chapter 3326. of the Revised Code; an educational service center; or
a community school established under Chapter 3314. of the Revised
Code from declaring school property or school facilities to be a
nonsmoking place, consistent with section 3794.05 of the Revised
Code, or from enacting policies to implement section 3313.751 of the
Revised Code.

Sec.
2935.034.
A
peace officer acting within the officer's territorial jurisdiction
has the same authority vested in enforcement agents under division
(B) of section 5502.14 of the Revised Code.

Sec.
3313.751.
(A)
As used in this section:

(1)
"School district" means a city, local, exempted village, or
joint vocational school district.

(2)
"Smoke" means to burn any substance containing tobacco,
including a lighted cigarette, cigar, or pipe, or to burn a clove
cigarette.

"Smoke" includes the use of an electronic smoking device or
vapor product, as those terms are defined in section 2927.02 of the
Revised Code.

(3)
"Use tobacco" means to chew or maintain any substance
containing tobacco, including smokeless tobacco, in the mouth to
derive the effects of tobacco
,
or to use or consume any product, whether smoked, heated, chewed,
absorbed, dissolved, inhaled, or ingested by any other means, that is
made or derived from tobacco or that contains any form of nicotine
.

(B)
No pupil shall smoke or use tobacco or possess any substance
containing tobacco

or nicotine

in any area under the control of a school district or an educational
service center or at any activity supervised by any school operated
by a school district or an educational service center.

(C)
No pupil shall use or possess any substance containing betel nut in
any area under the control of a school district or an educational
service center or at any activity supervised by any school operated
by a school district or an educational service center.

(D)
The board of education of each school district and the governing
board of each educational service center shall adopt a policy
providing for the enforcement of division (B) of this section and
establishing disciplinary measures for a violation of division (B) of
this section.

Sec.
3794.05.
Declaration
of establishment as nonsmoking.

(A)

Notwithstanding
any other provision of this chapter, the owner, manager, operator, or
other person in charge or control of an establishment, facility, or
outdoor area which does not otherwise qualify as a public place or
place of employment may declare such establishment, facility, or
outdoor area as a nonsmoking place.

(B)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a city, local,
exempted village, or joint vocational school; a STEM school
established under Chapter 3326. of the Revised Code; an educational
service center; or a community school established under Chapter 3314.
of the Revised Code may declare school property or school facilities
as a nonsmoking place.

(C)

Smoking
shall be prohibited in any place declared nonsmoking under this
section where a sign conforming to the requirements of section
3794.06
of
the Revised Code

is posted.

Sec.
5502.01.
(A)
The department of public safety shall administer and enforce the laws
relating to the registration, licensing, sale, and operation of motor
vehicles and the laws pertaining to the licensing of drivers of motor
vehicles.

The
department shall compile, analyze, and publish statistics relative to
motor vehicle accidents and the causes of them, prepare and conduct
educational programs for the purpose of promoting safety in the
operation of motor vehicles on the highways, and conduct research and
studies for the purpose of promoting safety on the highways of this
state.

(B)
The department shall administer the laws and rules relative to trauma
and emergency medical services specified in Chapter 4765. of the
Revised Code and any laws and rules relative to medical
transportation services specified in Chapter 4766. of the Revised
Code.

(C)
The department shall administer and enforce the laws contained in
Chapters 4301. and 4303. of the Revised Code and enforce the rules
and orders of the liquor control commission pertaining to retail
liquor permit holders.

(D)
The department shall administer the laws governing the state
emergency management agency and shall enforce all additional duties
and responsibilities as prescribed in the Revised Code related to
emergency management services.

(E)
The department shall conduct investigations pursuant to Chapter 5101.
of the Revised Code in support of the duty of the department of job
and family services to administer the supplemental nutrition
assistance program throughout this state. The department of public
safety shall conduct investigations necessary to protect the state's
property rights and interests in the supplemental nutrition
assistance program.

(F)
The department of public safety shall enforce compliance with orders
and rules of the public utilities commission and applicable laws in
accordance with Chapters 4905., 4921., and 4923. of the Revised Code
regarding commercial motor vehicle transportation safety, economic,
and hazardous materials requirements.

(G)
Notwithstanding Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code, the department of
public safety may establish requirements for its enforcement
personnel, including its enforcement agents described in section
5502.14 of the Revised Code, that include standards of conduct, work
rules and procedures, and criteria for eligibility as law enforcement
personnel.

(H)
The department shall administer, maintain, and operate the Ohio
criminal justice network. The Ohio criminal justice network shall be
a computer network that supports state and local criminal justice
activities. The network shall be an electronic repository for various
data, which may include arrest warrants, notices of persons wanted by
law enforcement agencies, criminal records, prison inmate records,
stolen vehicle records, vehicle operator's licenses, and vehicle
registrations and titles.

(I)
The department shall coordinate all homeland security activities of
all state agencies and shall be a liaison between state agencies and
local entities for those activities and related purposes.

(J)
The department shall administer and enforce the laws relative to
private investigators and security service providers specified in
Chapter 4749. of the Revised Code.

(K)
The department shall administer criminal justice services in
accordance with sections 5502.61 to 5502.66 of the Revised Code.

(L)
The department shall administer the Ohio school safety and crisis
center and the Ohio mobile training team in accordance with sections
5502.70 to 5502.703 of the Revised Code.

(M)
The department shall coordinate security measures and operations, and
may direct the department of administrative services to implement any
security measures and operations the department of public safety
requires, at the Vern Riffe Center and the James A. Rhodes state
office tower.

Notwithstanding
section 125.28 of the Revised Code, the director of public safety may
recover the costs of directing security measures and operations under
this division by either issuing intrastate transfer voucher billings
to the department of administrative services, which the department
shall process to pay for the costs, or, upon the request of the
director of administrative services, the director of budget and
management may transfer cash in the requested amount from the
building management fund created under section 125.28 of the Revised
Code. Payments received or cash transfers made under this division
for the costs of directing security measures and operations shall be
deposited into the state treasury to the credit of the security,
investigations, and policing fund created under section 4501.11 of
the Revised Code.

(N)
The department shall assist the division of marijuana control in
enforcing Chapter 3796. of the Revised Code, as provided in that
chapter.

(O)
The department, through the investigative unit maintained in
accordance with section 5502.13 of the Revised Code, shall administer
and enforce section 5502.81 of the Revised Code and shall coordinate
enforcement activities with the department of taxation related to
inspections of the premises of persons licensed to do business
distributing or selling at retail tobacco products, alternative
nicotine products, electronic smoking products, and vapor products to
determine compliance with Chapter 5743. of the Revised Code.

Sec.
5502.13.
The
department of public safety shall maintain an investigative unit in
order to conduct investigations and other enforcement activity
authorized by Chapters 3796., 4301., 4303., 5101., 5107.,
and

5108.
,
5502., and 5743.

and sections 2903.12, 2903.13, 2903.14, 2907.09, 2913.46, 2917.11,
2921.13, 2921.31, 2921.32, 2921.33, 2923.12, 2923.121, 2925.11,
2925.13, 2927.02, and 4507.30 of the Revised Code. The director of
public safety shall appoint the employees of the unit who are
necessary, designate the activities to be performed by those
employees, and prescribe their titles and duties.

Sec.
5502.14.
(A)
As used in this section
,
"felony"
:

(1)
"Felony"

has the same meaning as in section 109.511 of the Revised Code.

(2)
"Contraband" has the same meaning as in section 2901.01 of
the Revised Code and includes electronic smoking products designated
as contraband under section 5502.81 of the Revised Code.

(B)(1)
Any person who is employed by the department of public safety and
designated by the director of public safety to enforce Title XLIII of
the Revised Code and the rules adopted under it, Chapter 3796. of the
Revised Code and the rules adopted under that chapter, and the laws
and rules regulating the use of supplemental nutrition assistance
program benefits shall be known as an enforcement agent. The
employment by the department of public safety and the designation by
the director of public safety of a person as an enforcement agent
shall be subject to division (D) of this section. An enforcement
agent has the authority vested in peace officers pursuant to section
2935.03 of the Revised Code to keep the peace, to enforce all of the
following:

(a)
All applicable laws and rules on any retail liquor permit premises,
or on any other premises of public or private property, where a
violation of Title XLIII of the Revised Code or any rule adopted
under it is occurring;

(b)
All applicable laws and rules on persons and premises licensed under
Chapter 3796. of the Revised Code and on any other public or private
property where a violation of Chapter 3796. or any rule adopted under
that chapter is occurring;

(c)
All laws and rules governing the use of supplemental nutrition
assistance program benefits, women, infants, and children's coupons,
electronically transferred benefits, or any other access device that
is used alone or in conjunction with another access device to obtain
payments, allotments, benefits, money, goods, or other things of
value, or that can be used to initiate a transfer of funds, pursuant
to the supplemental nutrition assistance program established under
the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.) or any
supplemental food program administered by any department of this
state pursuant to the "Child Nutrition Act of 1966," 80
Stat. 885, 42 U.S.C.A. 1786. Enforcement agents, in enforcing
compliance with the laws and rules described in this division, may
keep the peace and make arrests for violations of those laws and
rules.

(2)
In addition to the authority conferred by division (B)(1) of this
section, an enforcement agent also may execute search warrants and
seize and take into custody any contraband
,
as defined in section 2901.01 of the Revised Code,

or any property that is otherwise necessary for evidentiary purposes
related to any violations of the laws or rules described in division
(B)(1) of this section. An enforcement agent may enter public or
private premises where activity alleged to violate the laws or rules
described in division (B)(1) of this section is occurring.

(3)
Enforcement agents who are on, immediately adjacent to, or across
from retail liquor permit premises or premises licensed under Chapter
3796. of the Revised Code and who are performing investigative duties
relating to those premises, enforcement agents who are on premises
that are not liquor permit premises or premises licensed under
Chapter 3796. of the Revised Code but on which a violation of Title
XLIII or Chapter 3796. of the Revised Code or any rule adopted under
that title or chapter allegedly is occurring, and enforcement agents
who view a suspected violation of Title XLIII or Chapter 3796. of the
Revised Code, of a rule adopted under that title or chapter, or of
another law or rule described in division (B)(1) of this section have
the authority to enforce the laws and rules described in division
(B)(1) of this section, authority to enforce any section in Title
XXIX of the Revised Code or any other section of the Revised Code
listed in section 5502.13 of the Revised Code if they witness a
violation of the section under any of the circumstances described in
this division, and authority to make arrests for violations of the
laws and rules described in division (B)(1) of this section and
violations of any of those sections.

(4)
The jurisdiction of an enforcement agent under division (B) of this
section shall be concurrent with that of the peace officers of the
county, township, or municipal corporation in which the violation
occurs.

(C)
Enforcement agents of the department of public safety who are engaged
in the enforcement of the laws and rules described in division (B)(1)
of this section may carry concealed weapons when conducting
undercover investigations pursuant to their authority as law
enforcement officers and while acting within the scope of their
authority pursuant to this chapter.

(D)(1)
The department of public safety shall not employ, and the director of
public safety shall not designate, a person as an enforcement agent
on a permanent basis, on a temporary basis, for a probationary term,
or on other than a permanent basis if the person previously has been
convicted of or has pleaded guilty to a felony.

(2)(a)
The department of public safety shall terminate the employment of a
person who is designated as an enforcement agent and who does either
of the following:

(i)
Pleads guilty to a felony;

(ii)
Pleads guilty to a misdemeanor pursuant to a negotiated plea
agreement as provided in division (D) of section 2929.43 of the
Revised Code in which the enforcement agent agrees to surrender the
certificate awarded to that agent under section 109.77 of the Revised
Code.

(b)
The department shall suspend the employment of a person who is
designated as an enforcement agent if the person is convicted, after
trial, of a felony. If the enforcement agent files an appeal from
that conviction and the conviction is upheld by the highest court to
which the appeal is taken or if no timely appeal is filed, the
department shall terminate the employment of that agent. If the
enforcement agent files an appeal that results in that agent's
acquittal of the felony or conviction of a misdemeanor, or in the
dismissal of the felony charge against the agent, the department
shall reinstate the agent. An enforcement agent who is reinstated
under division (D)(2)(b) of this section shall not receive any back
pay unless the conviction of that agent of the felony was reversed on
appeal, or the felony charge was dismissed, because the court found
insufficient evidence to convict the agent of the felony.

(3)
Division (D) of this section does not apply regarding an offense that
was committed prior to January 1, 1997.

(4)
The suspension or termination of the employment of a person
designated as an enforcement agent under division (D)(2) of this
section shall be in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.

Sec.
5502.80.
As
used in sections 5502.80 to 5502.89 of the Revised Code:

(A)
"Contraband" has the same meaning as in section 2901.01 of
the Revised Code.

(B)
"Disposable electronic smoking product" means an electronic
smoking product that is filled with a solution or other substance
containing nicotine before the product is sold, is sealed by the
manufacturer and not intended to be opened by the consumer, and is
intended to be disposed of after the solution or other substance
containing nicotine has been depleted.

(C)
"Distributor" means any of the following:

(1)
A person that sells vapor products to a retail dealer;

(2)
A retail dealer that receives vapor products with respect to which
the tax imposed by Chapter 5743. of the Revised Code has not or will
not be paid by another person that is a distributor;

(3)
A secondary manufacturer;

(4)
A wholesale dealer located in this state that receives vapor products
from a manufacturer, or receives vapor products on which the tax
imposed by Chapter 5743. of the Revised Code has not been paid;

(5)
A wholesale dealer located outside this state that sells vapor
products to a wholesale dealer in this state.

(D)
"Electronic smoking product" means any noncombustible
product, other than a cigarette or tobacco product, that contains or
is designed to use vapor products and employs a heating element,
power source, electronic circuit, or other electronic, chemical, or
mechanical means, regardless of shape or size, that can be used to
produce vapor from the vapor product. "Electronic smoking
product" includes a vapor product whether sold with or
separately from an electronic smoking product, an electronic
cigarette, a disposable electronic smoking product, an open-system
electronic smoking product, an electronic cigar, an electronic
cigarillo, an electronic pipe, an electronic hookah, a vape pen, a
vaporizer, or any similar product or device. "Electronic smoking
product" does not include any product regulated as a drug,
device, or combination product under Chapter V of the "Federal
Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act," 21 U.S.C. 301, et seq.

(E)
"Investigative unit" means the investigative unit
maintained by the department of public safety in accordance with
section 5502.13 of the Revised Code.

(F)
"Nicotine" means any form of the chemical nicotine,
including any salt or complex, regardless of whether the chemical is
naturally or synthetically derived, and nicotinic alkaloids and
nicotine analogues, such as metatine.

(G)
"Nicotine analogue" means a substance that meets any of the
following:

(1)
Has a chemical structure substantially similar to the chemical
structure of nicotine;

(2)
Has, or is represented to have, an effect on the central nervous
system similar to the chemical nicotine;

(3)
Is manufactured, formulated, sold, distributed, or marketed with the
intent to avoid the provisions of this chapter.

(H)
"Open-system electronic smoking product" means an
electronic smoking product that utilizes a nicotine solution in a
container that is intended to be refillable or that otherwise makes
the nicotine solution accessible to the consumer through customary or
reasonably foreseeable handling or use.

(I)
"Person" includes individuals, firms, partnerships,
associations, joint-stock companies, corporations, combinations of
individuals of any form, and the state and any of its political
subdivisions.

(J)
"Secondary manufacturer" means any person in this state
engaged in the business of repackaging, reconstituting, diluting, or
reprocessing a vapor product for resale to consumers.

(K)
"Retail dealer" includes any person in this state engaged
in the business of selling vapor products to ultimate consumers in
this state, regardless of quantity, amount, or number of sales.

(L)
"Sale" includes an exchange, barter, gift, offer for sale,
or distribution, and includes transactions in interstate or foreign
commerce.

(M)
"Timely filed premarket tobacco product application" means
an application pursuant to 21 U.S.C. 387j for an electronic smoking
product or vapor product marketed in the United States as of August
8, 2016, that was submitted to the United States food and drug
administration on or before September 9, 2020, and accepted for
filing.

(N)
"Vapor product" means any liquid solution or other
substance that contains nicotine and is depleted as it is used in an
electronic smoking product, whether sold with or separately from an
electronic smoking product. "Vapor product" does not
include any solution or substance regulated as a drug, device, or
combination product under Chapter V of the "Federal Food, Drug,
and Cosmetic Act," 21 U.S.C. 301, et seq.

(O)(1)
"Wholesale dealer" includes only persons that either:

(a)
Subject to division (O)(2)(a) of this section, bring in or cause to
be brought into this state unstamped cigarettes purchased directly
from the manufacturer, producer, or importer of cigarettes for sale
in this state;

(b)
Are engaged in the business of selling cigarettes, tobacco products,
or vapor products to others for the purpose of resale.

(2)
"Wholesale dealer" does not include either of the
following:

(a)
A person that brings in or causes to be brought into this state
cigarettes with respect to which no evidence of tax payment is
required thereon as provided in section 5743.04 of the Revised Code;

(b)
A cigarette manufacturer, export warehouse proprietor, or importer
with a valid permit under 26 U.S.C. 5713, if that person sells
cigarettes in this state only to wholesale dealers holding valid and
current licenses under section 5743.15 of the Revised Code or to an
export warehouse proprietor or another manufacturer.

Sec.
5502.81.
(A)
Within sixty days after the effective date of this section, and
annually thereafter, every manufacturer of electronic smoking
products sold at retail in this state or to a person in this state,
whether directly or through a distributor, wholesale dealer, retail
dealer, or similar intermediary or intermediaries, shall submit all
of the following to the investigative unit, in the form and manner
prescribed by the department of public safety:

(1)
Certification that the manufacturer agrees to comply with this
chapter;

(2)
Certification under penalty of perjury, that at least one of the
following applies:

(a)
The manufacturer has received a marketing authorization or similar
order for the electronic smoking product from the United States food
and drug administration pursuant to 21 U.S.C. 387j.

(b)
The manufacturer submitted a timely filed premarket tobacco product
application for the electronic smoking product to the United States
food and drug administration pursuant to 21 U.S.C. 387j, and the
application either remains under review or a final decision on the
application is not otherwise in effect.

(c)
The United States food and drug administration has issued a rule,
guidance, or other formal statement that temporarily exempts the
electronic smoking product from federal marketing authorization
requirements.

(3)
A copy of the marketing authorization described in division (A)(2)(a)
of this section, evidence that the timely filed premarket tobacco
product application for the electronic smoking product described in
division (A)(2)(b) of this section was submitted and either remains
pending or is not otherwise in effect, or a document issued by the
United States food and drug administration demonstrating that the
electronic smoking product is temporarily exempt from federal
marketing authorization requirements;

(4)
A certification form that separately lists the brand name, product
name, and flavor for each electronic smoking product that the
manufacturer, directly or indirectly, sells at retail in this state
or to a person in this state.

(B)
The manufacturer shall submit with the annual certification required
by division (A) of this section a filing fee set by rule of the
department of public safety.

(C)
The information submitted by a manufacturer under division (A)(3) of
this section is confidential commercial or financial information for
purposes of sections 149.43 to 149.45 of the Revised Code. The
investigative unit shall not disclose such information except as
required or authorized by law. A manufacturer may partially redact
information required to be submitted under division (A)(3) of this
section upon request and approval by the investigative unit.

(D)(1)
A manufacturer required to submit a certification under division (A)
of this section shall notify the investigative unit within thirty
days after any material change to the information required to be
provided as part of that certification, including either of the
following:

(a)
Issuance or denial of a marketing authorization or other order by the
United States food and drug administration pursuant to 21 U.S.C.
387j;

(b)
Any other order or action by the United States food and drug
administration that affects the ability of the electronic smoking
product to be introduced or delivered into interstate commerce for
commercial distribution in the United States.

(2)
A manufacturer is not required to resubmit the certification and
documentation described in divisions (A)(2) and (3) of this section
based solely on changes to the name, brand style, or packaging of an
electronic smoking product.

(E)
Beginning ninety days after the effective date of this section, the
investigative unit shall maintain and make publicly available on the
investigative unit's public web site a directory that lists all
electronic smoking product manufacturers, brand names, product names,
and flavors for which certification forms have been submitted and
approved by the investigative unit under this section. The
investigative unit shall update the directory at least one time each
month.

(F)
The investigative unit shall not add a manufacturer or electronic
smoking product to the directory if the investigative unit determines
that any of the following apply:

(1)
The manufacturer failed to provide a complete and accurate
certification as required by division (A) of this section.

(2)
The manufacturer failed to include with such certification the
payment required by division (B) of this section.

(3)
The manufacturer sold products in this state required to be certified
under this section during a period when either the manufacturer or
the product had not been certified and listed on the directory.

(4)
The manufacturer's certification under this section contains false
information, material misrepresentations, or omissions.

(G)(1)
If the investigative unit determines that any of the violations
described in divisions (F)(1) to (4) of this section apply to a
manufacturer or electronic smoking product that is already listed on
the directory, the investigative unit shall provide the manufacturer
notice of the violation and an opportunity to cure deficiencies
before removing the manufacturer or electronic smoking product from
the directory.

(2)
The investigative unit shall not remove a manufacturer or an
electronic smoking product from the directory sooner than thirty days
after sending such notice.

(3)
The investigative unit shall send the notice electronically or by
facsimile to an electronic mail address or facsimile number, as the
case may be, provided by the manufacturer in the manufacturer's most
recent certification filed under this section.

(4)
The investigative unit shall include in the notice a description of
the violation, instructions for how to cure the violation, and an
explanation that failure to cure the violation within thirty days
could result in removal of the manufacturer or electronic smoking
product from the directory.

(5)
If the manufacturer does not cure the violation within thirty days
after notice is sent, the investigative unit shall remove the
manufacturer or the electronic smoking product, as applicable, from
the directory.

(H)
An electronic smoking product that is not listed in the directory is
contraband, as of the following dates:

(1)
In the case of an electronic smoking product that is removed from the
directory under division (G) of this section, thirty days after the
investigative unit publishes an updated directory that includes the
product's removal;

(2)
For all other electronic smoking products, January 1, 2027, or on the
date that the investigative unit first publishes the directory on the
investigative unit's public web site, whichever is later.

(I)
Subject to division (J) of this section, no person shall sell or
offer for retail sale in this state or to a person in this state an
electronic smoking product that is not included in the directory. A
manufacturer shall not sell, either directly or through a distributor
or wholesale dealer, retail dealer, or similar intermediary or
intermediaries, an electronic smoking product in this state that is
not included in the directory.

(J)
A retail dealer, distributor, or wholesale dealer shall, before the
electronic smoking product is contraband pursuant to division (H) of
this section, either sell the product or remove the product from the
retail dealer's, distributor's, or wholesale dealer's inventory.
After the electronic smoking product is considered contraband, it is
subject to seizure, forfeiture, and destruction by the investigative
unit. The cost of such seizure, forfeiture, and destruction shall be
paid by the person from whom the products are confiscated. The
investigative unit may store and dispose of the seized products as
appropriate, in accordance with federal, state, and local laws
pertaining to storage and disposal of such products, including by
contracting with a licensed hazardous waste disposal facility. No
electronic smoking products shall be seized under this section from a
consumer who makes a bona fide purchase of such product.

(K)(1)
The investigative unit may impose a civil penalty on a distributor,
wholesale dealer, retail dealer, or any other person who sells or
offers for retail sale in this state an electronic smoking product
that is not included in the directory. The department of public
safety shall set the amount of the civil penalty by rule. Each day
that the electronic smoking product is sold or offered for retail
sale in violation of this section is a separate violation and subject
to an additional civil penalty under this division.

(2)
The investigative unit may impose a civil penalty on an electronic
smoking product manufacturer whose electronic smoking products are
not listed in the directory and are sold for retail sale in this
state or to a person in this state, whether directly or through a
distributor or wholesale dealer, retail dealer, or similar
intermediary or intermediaries. The department of public safety shall
set the amount of the civil penalty by rule. Each day that the
electronic smoking product is sold or offered for retail sale in
violation of this section is a separate violation and subject to an
additional civil penalty under this division.

(3)
All fees and penalties collected under this section shall be
deposited to the electronic smoking products enforcement fund, which
is created in the state treasury. All investment earnings of the fund
shall be credited to the fund. The investigative unit shall use money
in the fund for administration and enforcement of this section. The
investigative unit may allocate money in the fund to the department
of taxation for the purposes of funding inspections and enforcement
actions.

(L)
To enforce this section, the investigative unit may examine the
books, papers, invoices, and other records of any person in
possession, control, or occupancy of any premises where electronic
smoking products are placed, stored, sold, or offered for sale, as
well as the stock of electronic smoking products on the premises.
Every person in the possession, control, or occupancy of any premises
where such products are placed, sold, or offered for sale shall give
the investigative unit the means, facilities, and opportunity for the
examinations authorized by this section.

(M)
The investigative unit shall annually conduct unannounced compliance
checks for each distributor, wholesale dealer, and retail dealer that
sells or distributes electronic smoking products in this state for
the purposes of enforcing this section. In addition, the
investigative unit shall conduct an unannounced follow-up compliance
check of any distributor, wholesale dealer, or retail dealer after
the investigative unit determines that the distributor, wholesale
dealer, or retail dealer has violated this section. The investigative
unit shall publish the results of all compliance checks and follow-up
compliance checks at least annually and shall make the results
available to the public on request.

(N)(1)
As used in division (N) of this section "nonresident or foreign
manufacturer" means a person that manufactures or sells
electronic smoking products that is not a resident of this state;
incorporated, formed, or organized under the laws of this state; or
licensed, registered, or certified to transact business in the state
under Title XVII of the Revised Code.

(2)
A nonresident or foreign manufacturer, as a condition precedent to
inclusion and retention of the manufacturer and the manufacturer's
electronic smoking products in the directory developed and published
under this section, shall do all of the following:

(a)
Appoint and continually engage without interruption the services of
an agent in this state to act as agent for the service, in any manner
authorized by law, of all process pertaining to any action or
proceeding in the courts of this state against the manufacturer
concerning or arising out of the enforcement of this section;

(b)
Agree that service on the manufacturer's agent constitutes legal and
valid service of process on the manufacturer;

(c)
Provide the investigative unit with proof, to the satisfaction of the
department of public safety, of the appointment of, and notice of the
name, address, telephone number, and availability of, the
manufacturer's agent;

(d)
Provide notice to the investigative unit thirty days prior to
terminating the agent and provide proof, to the satisfaction of the
department of public safety, of the appointment of a new agent not
less than five days prior to the termination;

(e)
Provide notice to the investigative unit within five days after the
agent terminates the appointment and include proof, to the
satisfaction of the department of public safety, of the appointment
of a new agent.

(3)(a)
Any nonresident or foreign manufacturer whose electronic smoking
products are sold in the state or to a person in this state and who
has not appointed and continually engaged an agent in accordance with
division (N)(2) of this section is deemed to have appointed the
secretary of state as the manufacturer's agent and may be proceeded
against in any action or proceeding arising under this section by
service of process on the secretary of state.

(b)
The deemed appointment of the secretary of state as a manufacturer's
agent does not satisfy the condition precedent in division (N)(2) of
this section to be included or retained in the directory.

(4)(a)
A nonresident or foreign manufacturer, as a condition precedent to
inclusion and retention of the manufacturer and the manufacturer's
electronic smoking products in the directory developed and published
under this section, shall obtain and maintain in effect at all times
a surety bond issued by a surety company or insurance company
authorized to do business in this state.

(b)
The bond shall be in the amount of twenty-five thousand dollars in
favor of the department of public safety. The bond shall be
conditioned upon the performance by the nonresident or foreign
manufacturer of all requirements and obligations imposed by this
section. A surety on a manufacturer's bond is liable up to the amount
of the bond, and the department of public safety may execute on such
surety bond for the payment of fines and penalties imposed on the
manufacturer under this section and for the costs of seizure and
destruction of products sold in violation of this section. If the
department executes on the surety bond, the department may require
the manufacturer to provide an additional bond as a condition
precedent for retaining the manufacturer and the manufacturer's
electronic smoking products in the directory.

(c)
A surety on a bond furnished by a manufacturer as provided in this
section shall be released and discharged from liability to the
department sixty days after a written request to the investigative
unit. This division shall not be construed to relieve, release, or
discharge the surety from liability already accrued or which accrues
before the expiration of the sixty-day period. The investigative unit
shall, upon receiving any such request, notify the manufacturer that
furnished the bond. Unless the manufacturer, on or before the
expiration of the sixty-day period, files with the investigative unit
a new bond, with the surety approved by and acceptable to the
investigative unit, the investigative unit shall remove the
manufacturer and the manufacturer's electronic smoking products from
the directory.

(O)
A determination by the investigative unit to not include or to remove
from the directory a manufacturer or an electronic smoking product is
subject to review by filing a civil action for prospective
declaratory or injunctive relief.

(P)
The department of public safety may promulgate rules necessary to
effect the purposes of this section.

(Q)
Starting six months after the effective date of this section, and
every six months thereafter, the investigative unit shall provide a
report to the general assembly regarding the status of the directory,
manufacturers and products included in the directory, revenue and
expenditures related to administration of this section, and
enforcement activities undertaken pursuant to this section.

(R)
Any violation of this section is an unfair or deceptive act or
practice in violation of section 1345.02 of the Revised Code.

Sec.
5502.82.
(A)(1)
The investigative unit shall conduct inspections of the premises of
persons licensed to do business distributing or selling at retail
tobacco products, alternative nicotine products, electronic smoking
products, and vapor products to determine compliance with section
5502.81 and Chapter 5743. of the Revised Code, and the rules adopted
thereunder, pertaining to distributor license and retail license
holders.

(2)
Except as otherwise provided in this section, those inspections shall
be conducted only during those hours in which the license holder is
open for business and only by authorized enforcement agents of the
investigative unit or by any peace officer, as defined in section
2935.01 of the Revised Code. Inspections may be conducted at other
hours only to determine compliance with laws or department of
taxation rules that regulate the hours of sale of tobacco products,
alternative nicotine products, electronic smoking products, and vapor
products. Any inspection conducted pursuant to this section is
subject to all of the following requirements:

(a)
No property shall be confiscated other than contraband, as defined in
section 2901.01 of the Revised Code and including electronic smoking
products designated as contraband under section 5502.81 of the
Revised Code, tobacco products, alternative nicotine products,
electronic smoking products, and vapor products being offered for
sale without the required license, or property that is otherwise
necessary for evidentiary purposes.

(b)
A complete inventory of all property confiscated from the premises
shall be given to the license holder or the license holder's agent or
employee by the confiscating enforcement agent or peace officer at
the conclusion of the inspection. At that time, the inventory shall
be signed by the confiscating enforcement agent or peace officer, and
the enforcement agent or peace officer shall give the license holder
or the license holder's agent or employee the opportunity to sign the
inventory.

(c)
Inspections conducted pursuant to this section shall be conducted in
a reasonable manner. A finding by any court of competent jurisdiction
that the inspection was not conducted in a reasonable manner in
accordance with this section or, as applicable, any rules promulgated
by the department of taxation or department of public safety, may be
considered grounds for suppression of evidence. A finding that the
inspection was not conducted in a reasonable manner in accordance
with this section or, as applicable, any rules promulgated by the
department of taxation or department of public safety, may be
considered grounds for dismissal of the case.

(B)
If any court of competent jurisdiction finds that property
confiscated as the result of an inspection is not necessary for
evidentiary purposes and is not contraband or was not offered for
sale in violation of license requirements, the court shall order the
immediate return of the confiscated property, if such property is not
otherwise subject to forfeiture, to the license holder. The return of
this property is not grounds for dismissal of the case. The
commission may order the return of confiscated property if no
criminal prosecution is pending or anticipated.

Sec.
5502.83.
(A)
No person shall negligently sell in this state an electronic smoking
product that is accompanied by, uses, or has advertising, labeling,
packaging, trade dress, trademarks, branding, or design of the
product that does any of the following:

(1)
Depicts a cartoon or cartoon-like character that mimics a character
primarily aimed at entertaining minors;

(2)
Includes an image of a celebrity or a character in a comic book,
movie, television show, or video game, or a mythical creature;

(3)
Imitates or mimics trademarks or trade dress of products that are or
have been primarily marketed to minors;

(4)
Includes a symbol that is primarily used to market products to
minors;

(5)
Imitates, mimics, or replicates the design of a product that is not a
vapor product, including all the following:

(a)
School supplies commonly used by minors, including an eraser,
highlighter, pen, pencil, or backpack;

(b)
A smart phone, smart watch, smart phone case, smart watch case,
headphones, or ear buds;

(c)
A cosmetic product, including lipstick;

(d)
A toy;

(6)
Has entertainment features, such as the ability to play games, play
music or other audio, display photos or video, or any similar
electronic entertainment features.

(B)
A person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the
third degree and shall only be fined five hundred dollars.

Sec.
5502.99.
(A)
Whoever violates division (A) of section 5502.37 of the Revised Code
shall be fined fifty dollars or imprisoned for not less than sixty
days, or both.

(B)
Whoever violates division (B) of section 5502.37 of the Revised Code
shall be fined not less than five thousand nor more than ten thousand
dollars, or imprisoned for not less than one nor more than five
years, or both.

(C)
Whoever violates division (C) or (D) of section 5502.37 of the
Revised Code shall be fined not less than two thousand nor more than
five thousand dollars, or imprisoned for not less than one nor more
than five years, or both.

(D)
Except as provided in divisions (A), (B), and (C) of this section and
unless another penalty is provided by the laws of this state, whoever
violates sections 5502.21 to 5502.37 of the Revised Code, or any
other law enacted, adopted, or issued pursuant to those sections,
shall be fined not more than fifty dollars or imprisoned for not more
than sixty days, or both.

(E)
Whoever knowingly presents false information in a certification
required under division (A) of section 5502.81 of the Revised Code is
guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree for each such false
representation.

Sec.
5743.01.
As
used in this chapter:

(A)
"Person" includes individuals, firms, partnerships,
associations, joint-stock companies, corporations, combinations of
individuals of any form, and the state and any of its political
subdivisions.

(B)
"Wholesale dealer" includes only those persons:

(1)
Who bring in or cause to be brought into this state unstamped
cigarettes purchased directly from the manufacturer, producer, or
importer of cigarettes for sale in this state but does not include
persons who bring in or cause to be brought into this state
cigarettes with respect to which no evidence of tax payment is
required thereon as provided in section 5743.04 of the Revised Code;
or

(2)
Who are engaged in the business of selling cigarettes, tobacco
products, or vapor products to others for the purpose of resale.

"Wholesale
dealer" does not include any cigarette manufacturer, export
warehouse proprietor, or importer with a valid permit under 26 U.S.C.
5713 if that person sells cigarettes in this state only to wholesale
dealers holding valid and current licenses under section 5743.15 of
the Revised Code or to an export warehouse proprietor or another
manufacturer.

(C)
"Retail dealer" includes:

(1)
In reference to dealers in cigarettes, every person other than a
wholesale dealer engaged in the business of selling cigarettes in
this state, regardless of whether the person is located in this state
or elsewhere, and regardless of quantity, amount, or number of sales;

(2)
In reference to dealers in tobacco products, any person in this state
engaged in the business of selling tobacco products to ultimate
consumers in this state, regardless of quantity, amount, or number of
sales;

(3)
In reference to dealers in vapor products, any person in this state
engaged in the business of selling vapor products to ultimate
consumers in this state, regardless of quantity, amount, or number of
sales.

(D)
"Sale" includes exchange, barter, gift, offer for sale, and
distribution, and includes transactions in interstate or foreign
commerce.

(E)
"Cigarettes" includes any roll for smoking made wholly or
in part of tobacco, irrespective of size or shape, and whether or not
such tobacco is flavored, adulterated, or mixed with any other
ingredient, the wrapper or cover of which is made of paper,
reconstituted cigarette tobacco, homogenized cigarette tobacco,
cigarette tobacco sheet, or any similar materials other than cigar
tobacco.

(F)
"Package" means the individual package, box, or other
container in or from which retail sales of cigarettes are normally
made or intended to be made.

(G)
"Storage" includes any keeping or retention of cigarettes,
tobacco products, or vapor products for use or consumption in this
state.

(H)
"Use" includes the exercise of any right or power
incidental to the ownership of cigarettes, tobacco products, or vapor
products.

(I)
"Tobacco product" or "other tobacco product"
means any product made from tobacco, other than cigarettes, that is
made for smoking or chewing, or both, and snuff.

(J)
"Wholesale price" means the invoice price, including all
federal excise taxes, at which the manufacturer of the tobacco
product sells the tobacco product to unaffiliated distributors,
excluding any discounts based on the method of payment of the invoice
or on time of payment of the invoice. If the taxpayer buys from other
than a manufacturer, "wholesale price" means the invoice
price, including all federal excise taxes and excluding any discounts
based on the method of payment of the invoice or on time of payment
of the invoice.

(K)
"Distributor" means:

(1)
Any manufacturer who sells, barters, exchanges, or distributes
tobacco products to a retail dealer in the state, except when selling
to a retail dealer that has filed with the manufacturer a signed
statement agreeing to pay and be liable for the tax imposed by
section 5743.51 of the Revised Code;

(2)
Any wholesale dealer located in the state who receives tobacco
products from a manufacturer, or who receives tobacco products on
which the tax imposed by this chapter has not been paid;

(3)
Any wholesale dealer located outside the state who sells, barters,
exchanges, or distributes tobacco products to a wholesale or retail
dealer in the state; or

(4)
Any retail dealer who receives tobacco products on which the tax has
not or will not be paid by another distributor, including a retail
dealer that has filed a signed statement with a manufacturer in which
the retail dealer agrees to pay and be liable for the tax that would
otherwise be imposed on the manufacturer by section 5743.51 of the
Revised Code.

(L)
"Taxpayer" means any person liable for the tax imposed by
section 5743.51, 5743.62, or 5743.63 of the Revised Code.

(M)
"Seller" means any person located outside this state
engaged in the business of selling tobacco products or vapor products
to consumers for storage, use, or other consumption in this state.

(N)
"Manufacturer" means any person who manufactures and sells
cigarettes, tobacco products, or vapor products.

(O)
"Importer" means any person that is authorized, under a
valid permit issued under Section 5713 of the Internal Revenue Code,
to import finished cigarettes into the United States, either directly
or indirectly.

(P)
"Little cigar" means any roll for smoking, other than
cigarettes, made wholly or in part of tobacco that uses an integrated
cellulose acetate filter or other filter and is wrapped in any
substance containing tobacco, other than natural leaf tobacco.

(Q)
"Premium cigar" means any roll for smoking, other than
cigarettes and little cigars, that is made wholly or in part of
tobacco and that has all of the following characteristics:

(1)
The binder and wrapper of the roll consist entirely of leaf tobacco.

(2)
The roll contains no filter or tip, nor any mouthpiece consisting of
a material other than tobacco.

(3)
The weight of one thousand such rolls is at least six pounds.

(R)
"Maximum tax amount" means fifty cents plus the tax
adjustment factor computed under this division.

In
April of each year beginning in 2018, the tax commissioner shall
compute a tax adjustment factor by multiplying fifty cents by the
cumulative percentage increase in the consumer price index (all
items, all urban consumers) prepared by the bureau of labor
statistics of the United States department of labor from January 1,
2017, to the last day of December of the preceding year and rounding
the resulting product to the nearest one cent; provided, that the tax
adjustment factor for any year shall not be less than that for the
immediately preceding year. The maximum tax amount resulting from the
computation of the tax adjustment factor applies on and after the
ensuing first day of July through the thirtieth day of June
thereafter.

(S)
"Secondary manufacturer" means any person in this state
engaged in the business of repackaging, reconstituting, diluting, or
reprocessing a vapor product for resale to consumers.

(T)
"Vapor product" means any liquid solution or other
substance that (1) contains nicotine and (2) is depleted as it is
used in an electronic smoking product. "Vapor product" does
not include any solution or substance regulated as a drug, device, or
combination product under Chapter V of the "Federal Food, Drug,
and Cosmetic Act," 21 U.S.C. 301, et seq.

(U)
"Electronic smoking product" means any noncombustible
product, other than a cigarette or tobacco product, that (1) contains
or is designed to use vapor products and (2) employs a heating
element, power source, electronic circuit, or other electronic,
chemical, or mechanical means, regardless of shape or size, that can
be used to produce vapor from the vapor product. "Electronic
smoking product" includes, but is not limited to, an electronic
cigarette, electronic cigar, electronic cigarillo, electronic pipe,
electronic hookah, vape pen, vaporizer, or similar product or device,
but does not include any product regulated as a drug, device, or
combination product under Chapter V of the "Federal Food, Drug,
and Cosmetic Act," 21 U.S.C. 301, et seq.

(V)
"Vapor distributor" means any person that:

(1)
Sells vapor products to a retail dealer;

(2)
Is a retail dealer that receives vapor products with respect to which
the tax imposed by this chapter has not or will not be paid by
another person that is a vapor distributor;

(3)
Is a secondary manufacturer;

(4)
Is a wholesale dealer located in this state that receives vapor
products from a manufacturer, or receives vapor products on which the
tax imposed by this chapter has not been paid;

(5)
Is a wholesale dealer located outside this state that sells vapor
products to a wholesale dealer in this state.

(W)
"Vapor volume" means one of the following, as applicable:

(1)
If a vapor product is sold in liquid form, one-tenth of one
milliliter of vapor product;

(2)
If the vapor product is sold in a nonliquid form, one-tenth of one
gram of vapor product.

(X)
"Alternative nicotine product" means any noncombustible
product containing nicotine that is intended for human consumption,
whether chewed, absorbed, dissolved, or ingested by any other means.
"Alternative nicotine product" does not include a
cigarette, tobacco product, electronic smoking product, vapor
product, or any product regulated as a drug, device, or combination
product under Chapter V of the "Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic
Act," 21 U.S.C. 301, et seq.

Sec.
5743.54.
(A)
Each distributor of tobacco products and each vapor distributor of
vapor products shall maintain complete and accurate records of all
purchases and sales of tobacco products or vapor products, and shall
procure and retain all invoices, bills of lading, and other documents
relating to the purchases and sales of those products. The
distributor or vapor distributor shall keep open records and
documents during business hours for the inspection of the tax
commissioner, and shall preserve them for a period of three years
from the date the return was due or was filed, whichever is later,
unless the commissioner, in writing, consents to their destruction
within that period, or orders that they be kept for a longer period
of time.

(B)(1)
Each distributor of tobacco products and each vapor distributor of
vapor products subject to the tax levied by section 5743.51 or
5743.511 of the Revised Code shall mark on the invoices of tobacco
products or vapor products sold that the tax levied by that section
has been paid and shall indicate the distributor's or vapor
distributor's account number as assigned by the commissioner

and the brand and product name of each product sold
.

(2)
Each vapor distributor subject to the tax imposed by section 5743.51
of the Revised Code shall mark on all invoices the total weight of
the vapor product, rounded to the nearest one-tenth of one gram, if
the vapor product is not sold in liquid form. If the vapor product is
sold in liquid form, the invoice shall instead indicate the total
volume of the vapor product, rounded to the nearest one-tenth of one
milliliter.

(C)
No person shall make a false entry upon any invoice or record upon
which an entry is required by this section and no person shall
present any false entry for the inspection of the commissioner with
the intent to evade the tax levied under section 5743.51, 5743.511,
5743.62, 5743.621, 5743.63, or 5743.631 of the Revised Code.

Sec.
5743.541.
Each
retail dealer of tobacco products and vapor products not subject to
section 5747.54 of the Revised Code and each person that sells
alternative nicotine products or electronic smoking products at
retail shall maintain complete and accurate records of all purchases
and sales of those products and shall procure and retain all
invoices, bills of lading, and other documents relating to the
purchases and sales of those products. The person shall keep open
records and documents during business hours for the inspection of the
tax commissioner and shall preserve them for a period of three years
from the date the return was due or was filed, whichever is later,
unless the commissioner, in writing, consents to their destruction
within that period or orders that they be kept for a longer period of
time.

No
person shall make a false entry upon any invoice or record upon which
an entry is required by this section, and no person shall present any
false entry for the inspection of the commissioner with the intent to
evade the tax levied under section 5743.51, 5743.62, or 5743.63 of
the Revised Code.

Sec.
5743.61.
(A)(1)
No distributor or vapor distributor shall engage in the business of
distributing tobacco products, vapor products, or both within this
state without having a license issued by the department of taxation
to engage in that business.

(2)
On the dissolution of a partnership by death, the surviving partner
may operate under the license of the partnership until the expiration
of the license, and the heirs or legal representatives of deceased
persons, and receivers and trustees in bankruptcy appointed by any
competent authority, may operate under the license of the person
succeeded in possession by the heir, representative, receiver, or
trustee in bankruptcy if the partner or successor notifies the
department of taxation of the dissolution or succession within thirty
days after the dissolution or succession.

(B)(1)
Each applicant for a license described by division (A)(1) of this
section, annually, on or before the first day of February, shall make
and deliver to the tax commissioner, upon a form furnished by the
commissioner for that purpose, a statement showing the name of the
applicant, each physical place from which the applicant distributes
to distributors, vapor distributors, retail dealers, or wholesale
dealers, and any other information the commissioner considers
necessary for the administration of sections 5743.51 to 5743.66 of
the Revised Code.

(2)
At the time of making the application for a license to engage either
in the business of distributing tobacco products or in the business
of distributing both tobacco products and vapor products, the
applicant shall pay an application fee of one thousand dollars for
each place listed on the application where the applicant proposes to
carry on that business. The application fee for a license to engage
solely in the business of distributing vapor products shall be one
hundred twenty-five dollars for each place listed on the application
where the applicant proposes to carry on that business. The fee
charged for the application shall accompany the application and shall
be made payable to the treasurer of state

for deposit into the cigarette tax enforcement fund
.

(3)
Upon receipt of the application and payment of any licensing fee
required by this section, the commissioner shall verify that the
applicant has filed all returns, submitted all information, and paid
all outstanding taxes, charges, or fees as required for any taxes,
charges, or fees administered by the commissioner, to the extent the
commissioner is aware of the returns, information, taxes, charges, or
fees at the time of the application. Upon approval, the commissioner
shall issue to the applicant a license for each place of distribution
designated in the application authorizing the applicant to engage in
business at that location for one year commencing on the first day of
February. For licenses issued after the first day of February, the
license application fee shall be reduced proportionately by the
remainder of the twelve-month period for which the license is issued,
except that the application fee required to be paid under this
section shall be not less than two hundred dollars. If the original
license is lost, destroyed, or defaced, a duplicate license may be
obtained from the commissioner upon payment of a license replacement
fee of twenty-five dollars.

(C)
The holder of a tobacco or vapor products license

issued under this section

may transfer the license to a place of business on condition that the
licensee's ownership and business structure remains unchanged and the
licensee applies to the commissioner for the transfer on a form
issued by the commissioner, and pays a transfer fee of twenty-five
dollars.

(D)
If a distributor or vapor distributor fails to file forms as required
under Chapter 1346. or section 5743.52 of the Revised Code or pay the
tax due for two consecutive periods or three periods during any
twelve-month period, the commissioner may suspend the license issued
to the distributor or vapor distributor under this section. The
suspension is effective ten days after the commissioner notifies the
distributor or vapor distributor of the suspension in writing in the
manner provided in section 5703.37 of the Revised Code. The
commissioner shall lift the suspension when the distributor or vapor
distributor files the delinquent forms and pays the tax due,
including any penalties, interest, and additional charges. The
commissioner may refuse to issue the annual renewal of the license
required by this section and may refuse to issue a new license for a
location of the distributor until all delinquent forms are filed and
outstanding taxes are paid. This division does not apply to any
unpaid or underpaid tax liability that is the subject of a petition
or appeal filed pursuant to section 5743.56, 5717.02, or 5717.04 of
the Revised Code.

(E)(1)
The tax commissioner may impose a penalty of up to one thousand
dollars on any person found to be engaging in the business of
distributing tobacco products or vapor products without a license as
required by this section.

(2)
Any person engaging in the business of distributing tobacco products
or vapor products without a license as required by this section shall
comply with divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section within ten days
after being notified of the requirement to do so. Failure to comply
with division (E)(2) of this section subjects a person to penalties
imposed under section 5743.99 of the Revised Code.

(F)
The nicotine products licensing enforcement fund is created in the
state treasury. License and license replacement and transfer fees
collected pursuant to this section and section 5743.611 of the
Revised Code and penalties assessed pursuant to division (E) of this
section and division (D) of section 5743.611 of the Revised Code
shall be credited to the fund. The fund shall be used by the
department of taxation for the purpose of administering and enforcing
this chapter.

(G)
The tax commissioner may adopt rules necessary to administer this
section.

Sec.
5743.611.
(A)
No person shall engage in the business of selling at retail tobacco
products, alternative nicotine products, electronic smoking products,
or vapor products within this state without having a license issued
by the department of taxation to engage in that business under this
section.

(B)(1)
Each applicant for a license under this section, annually, on or
before the first day of February, shall make and deliver to the tax
commissioner, upon a form furnished by the commissioner for that
purpose, a statement showing the name of the applicant, each physical
place from which the applicant engages in the retail sale of tobacco
products, alternative nicotine products, electronic smoking products,
and vapor products, and any other information the commissioner
considers necessary for the administration of sections 5743.51 to
5743.66 of the Revised Code.

(2)
At the time of making the application required by division (B)(1) of
this section, the applicant shall pay an application fee in the sum
of one hundred twenty-five dollars for each physical place where the
person proposes to carry on the business for which the license is
required. Each place of business shall be deemed such space, under
lease or license to, or under the control of, or under the
supervision of the applicant, as is contained in one or more
contiguous, adjacent, or adjoining buildings constituting a place of
business operated by, or under the control of, one person, or under
one roof and connected by doors, halls, stairways, or elevators,
which space may contain any number of points at which tobacco
products, alternative nicotine products, electronic smoking products,
or vapor products are offered for sale, provided that each additional
point at which tobacco products, alternative nicotine products,
electronic smoking products, or vapor products are offered for sale
shall be listed in the application.

(3)
At the time of making the application required by division (B)(1) of
this section, the applicant shall affirm that the applicant will
comply with all federal and state laws applicable to the sale of
tobacco products, alternative nicotine products, electronic smoking
products, or vapor products.

(4)
Upon receipt of the application and payment of any licensing fee
required by division (B) of this section, the commissioner shall
verify that the applicant has filed all returns, submitted all
information, and paid all outstanding taxes, charges, or fees as
required for any taxes, charges, or fees administered by the
commissioner, to the extent the commissioner is aware of the returns,
information, taxes, charges, or fees at the time of the application.
Upon approval, the commissioner shall issue to the applicant a
license for each place of retail sale designated in the application
authorizing the applicant to engage in business at that location for
one year commencing on the first day of February. For licenses issued
after the first day of February, the license application fee shall be
reduced proportionately by the remainder of the twelve-month period
for which the license is issued, except that the application fee
required to be paid under this section shall be not less than
twenty-five dollars. If the original license is lost, destroyed, or
defaced, a duplicate license may be obtained from the commissioner
upon payment of a license replacement fee of twenty-five dollars.

(C)
The holder of a license issued under this section may transfer the
license to a place of business on the conditions that the licensee's
ownership and business structure remains unchanged, the licensee
applies to the commissioner for the transfer on a form issued by the
commissioner, and the licensee pays to the commissioner a transfer
fee of twenty-five dollars.

On
the dissolution of a partnership by death, the surviving partner may
operate under the license issued to the partnership under this
section until the expiration of the license, and the heirs or legal
representatives of deceased persons, and receivers and trustees in
bankruptcy appointed by any competent authority, may operate under
the license of the person succeeded in possession by the heir,
representative, receiver, or trustee in bankruptcy if the partner or
successor notifies the department of taxation of the dissolution or
succession within thirty days after the dissolution or succession.

(D)(1)
The tax commissioner may impose a penalty of up to one thousand
dollars on any person found to be engaging in the business of selling
at retail tobacco products, alternative nicotine products, electronic
smoking products, or vapor products without holding a license as
required by this section.

(2)
Any person engaging in the business of selling at retail tobacco
products, alternative nicotine products, electronic smoking products,
or vapor products without a license as required by this section shall
comply with divisions (B)(1) to (3) of this section within ten days
after being notified of the requirement to do so. Failure to comply
with division (D)(2) of this section subjects a person to penalties
imposed under section 5743.99 of the Revised Code.

(E)
The tax commissioner may adopt rules necessary to administer this
section.

Sec.
5743.74.
Persons
holding a license under section 5743.61 or 5743.611 of the Revised
Code may offer for sale and sell tobacco products, alternative
nicotine products, electronic smoking products, or vapor products
that are legal to market in the United States pursuant to the "Family
Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act," 21 U.S.C. 387 et
seq., and regulations adopted pursuant to that law, provided the
products satisfy other applicable requirements imposed by this
chapter.

Sec.
5743.75.
The
department of public safety may inspect the premises of any person
engaged in the business of distributing or selling at retail tobacco
products, alternative nicotine products, electronic smoking products,
or vapor products, regardless of whether the person holds a license
under section 5743.61 or 5743.611 of the Revised Code.

The
department of taxation and department of public safety shall
coordinate any inspection activities on such persons and shall share
information regarding the results of inspections.

The
department of taxation or department of public safety, in
consultation with each other, may adopt rules necessary to administer
this section.

Section
2.
That
existing sections 9.681, 3313.751, 3794.05, 5502.01, 5502.13,
5502.14, 5502.99, 5743.01, 5743.54, and 5743.61 of the Revised Code
are hereby repealed.