Proposed Tax Equity Legislation Could Inflate Vaping Costs Beyond Smoking

The first federal tax on vaping goods and nicotine pouches would be imposed under a new measure that has been presented in both chambers of Congress. Although the sponsors of the measure claim that the goal is to standardize the tax rate on all consumer nicotine products according to the amount of nicotine they contain, in practice, this would result in vaping being more expensive than smoking cigarettes.

Currently, there are vape taxes in thirty-three states and federal territories, and several of them also impose taxes on nicotine pouches. However, federal taxes on nicotine products without tobacco, such as vapes, are now nonexistent.

The Tobacco Tax Equity Act, if it is passed, would subject all tobacco-free nicotine products to an additional federal tax of $100.66 for every 1,810 milligrams of nicotine. That amounts to around 5.5 cents for every milligram of nicotine. In addition to the regular product price and any applicable state or local taxes, a customer who vapes 50 mg/mL nicotine salt e-liquid would spend an additional $2.75 per mL of juice, or $82.50 for a 30 mL bottle.

A 60 mL bottle of 12 mg/mL e-liquid would cost around $40 more to sell, and a 5 mL disposable vape would cost an additional $14 due to the law. A single JUUL pod would be taxed at a rate higher than that of a pack of cigarettes ($2.25 vs. $2.00), and a further $2.00 would be charged for a package containing 20 nicotine pouches. A one-liter bottle containing 100 mg/mL of nicotine would cost more than $5,000 in taxes for DIY vape juice makers!

A national call to action has been released by the Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association (CASAA), urging vapers and other nicotine users to get in touch with their congressional representatives and voice their objection to the ridiculous new tax idea.

Introduced by Illinois Democrat Dick Durbin, a longtime opponent of vaping, the Senate bill, S 2929 , is co-sponsored by eight other Senate Democrats. Illinois Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat who has participated in numerous anti-vaping legislative initiatives, introduced HR 5715 , the House version of the bill. On September 26, both measures were introduced.

Durbin unveiled the CARE for Moms Act a few days prior, which also contains the recently proposed tobacco and e-cigarette taxes. However, Durbin made no mention of taxes in his press releases regarding the CARE for Moms Act.

In past legislative sessions, Durbin has put forth other "tax equity" measures that are identical to this one. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat from Nevada, pulled the Tobacco Tax Equity Act of 2021's wording from the Democrats' year-end budget package two years ago with just a few days left.

In addition, the Tobacco Tax Equity Act of 2023 would raise the federal tax rates on wet snuff and pipe tobacco by up to 2,000 percent, and it would treble the tax on cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco, and small cigars. There is proof that moist snuff is safer than any type of burned tobacco.

The authors boasted that the American Public Health Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Lung Association, American Heart Association, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Trust for America's Health, and National Association of County and City Health Officials all supported the new bill in a press release promoting it.