NORFOLK, Va. — Attorney General Jason Miyares sent a letter to the U.S Food and Drug Administration on Thursday to crack down on the sale of illegal E-cigarettes and vape products.
In the letter, Miyares writes recent actions to restrict the availability of these products to kids, such as the ban of flavored E-cigarette products, are a step in the right direction.
However, he said there is still no centralized enforcement mechanism or license to hold shops accountable if it happens.
Miyares said this resulted in more than double the sale of disposable vape device products since January of 2020.
"I don't know how they're doing it, but it has to be shops that don't care," Justin Baumgardner, the manager of Quick Vape in Norfolk, said. "More so gas stations and places that shouldn't have any business selling vape products."
Baumgardner who has been in the business of vape products for the last five years, said anytime anyone underage enters their store, they are asked to leave.
He said the issue of children getting their hand on vapes is so huge, it's hard to crack down on it.
News
Delta 8 and marijuana seized at York Tobacco & Vape shop
"New regulations can be good if they're made in good faith, but there are already tons of regulations out there to stop it, and it hasn't worked so far," Baumgardner said.
In the attorney generals letter to the FDA he also mentions how Virginians are voicing concerns about reports of black market vaping product from china, potentially laced with fentanyl.
Baumgardner said there's already regulations in place to make sure shops are selling safe products.
Watch related coverage: Delta 8 and marijuana seized at York Tobacco & Vape shop
"Anything we sell has been approved through the PMTA (Premarket Tobacco Product Applications) process through the FDA," Baumgardner said. " So everything has been regulated, everything has been legal, everything is clean."
Miyares hopes an initiative by the FDA would help Virginia state legislatures enact it's own regulatory framework for the control of legal sales and distribution of E-cigarette and vape products.
Those regulatory systems would include creating a statewide retail license or permit for just the sale of vape products.
Baumgardner also wonders if state leaders could look at holding parents accountable as well if their child is found with a product.
"If mom and dad had to pay a $500 fine and then second offense $2,500 fine, is Johnny going to keep vaping or is he not?" Baumgardner said. "Let's look at that before we start hurting people who need this to quit smoking."
