{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://conaway.house.gov/media/press-releases/conaway-durbin-tillis-maloy-introduce-legislation-strengthen-and-improve", "Conaway, Durbin, Tillis, Maloy Introduce Legislation to Strengthen and Improve Enforcement of Illegal Tobacco Products", "2025-12-18", "2025", "2025-12", "Democrat", "House", "NJ", "Herbert C. Conaway, Jr.", "C001136", "conaway.house.gov", "conaway", "https://conaway.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "Washington D.C. \u2014 Today, Congressman Herb Conaway Jr., MD (D-NJ), Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Congresswoman Celeste Maloy (R-UT) introduced the bicameral and bipartisan Strengthening Task Force Operations to Prevent Illicit Vaping Act (S.T.O.P. Illicit Vaping Act). This legislation would establish and strengthen a federal multi-agency task force to coordinate enforcement, information sharing, and strategy to combat the illegal importation, distribution, and sale of unauthorized e-cigarettes.\n\n\u201cThe rise of illegally imported and unregulated e-cigarettes is a growing threat to public health, legitimate businesses, and the integrity of our enforcement system,\u201d said Congressman Conaway. \u201cAs a physician, I understand the urgency of protecting Americans from illegal and dangerous tobacco products. The S.T.O.P. Illicit Vaping Act strengthens federal task forces on the front lines, equipping them with the tools and coordination necessary to disrupt illegal vaping networks. This bill takes a responsible, enforcement-focused approach to safeguarding communities and ensuring a lawful, transparent marketplace.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf we hope to prevent the next generation of children from getting hooked on nicotine, we must enforce our existing laws and finally crack down on the illegal e-cigarette products that are flooding stores nationwide,\u201d said Senator Durbin. \u201cMy bipartisan legislation, the S.T.O.P. Illicit Vaping Act, would cement DOJ and FDA\u2019s task force dedicated to preventing the unlawful sale of these unauthorized vape products.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe flood of illegal and unregulated e-cigarettes, particularly from China, undermines public health, skirts federal law, and disadvantages businesses that play by the rules,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThe S.T.O.P. Illicit Vaping Act strengthens coordination among federal agencies to crack down on these illicit products, protect kids from unauthorized nicotine devices, and ensure our laws are enforced as Congress intended.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere are clear laws on the books governing tobacco and vaping products, but those laws only matter if they\u2019re enforced,\u201d said Congresswoman Celeste Maloy. \u201cThe S.T.O.P. Illicit Vaping Act strengthens enforcement by improving coordination across agencies so illegal operators can\u2019t take advantage of gaps in the system.\u201d\n\nFor the S.T.O.P. Illicit Vaping Act bill text click here.\n\nThe S.T.O.P. Illicit Vaping Act is cosponsored by: Reps. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL).\n\nThe S.T.O.P. Illicit Vaping Act is endorsed by the following organizations: American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, American Cancer Society, and the American Academy of Pediatrics.\n\n\u201cThe Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids strongly supports the legislation introduced by Rep. Conaway and Rep. Maloy to help ensure the federal government is taking comprehensive enforcement action against the many illegal e-cigarette products that are currently on the market. We commend their efforts to prevent illegal e-cigarettes from being imported, distributed and sold in the United States and to hold bad actors accountable for endangering the health of our kids,\u201d said Yolonda C. Richardson, President and CEO of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.\n\n\u201cAcross the U.S., more than 1.6 million middle and high school students vape, and nearly 90% use e-cigarettes flavored like fruit, dessert or mint. Unfortunately, many of the e-cigarettes youth use are being illegally sold in the U.S. Keeping these illegal, addictive and harmful products out of the hands of children requires strong coordination across federal agencies. We commend Representative Conaway\u2019s leadership in introducing legislation to codify the multi-agency taskforce responsible for combatting illicit e-cigarettes,\u201d said Harold Wimmer, President and CEO of the American Lung Association.\n\n\u201cPediatricians too often see the health impacts of e-cigarette use on our patients, and we know that many of the addictive nicotine devices that end up in the hands of young people are being sold unlawfully. The STOP Illicit Vaping Act would take important strides toward removing unauthorized e-cigarette products from the market and keeping them away from children and teens. We look forward to seeing Congress move this bill forward,\u201d said Susan J. Kressly, MD, FAAP, President of the American Academy of Pediatrics.", 1, "2026-06-04T06:38:12Z", "2026-06-04T06:39:44Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://conaway.house.gov/media/press-releases/conaway-durbin-tillis-maloy-introduce-legislation-strengthen-and-improve"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.7395787872374058, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}