Key points:

• Tennessee’s legislature has passed SB 763, introducing a 10% wholesale tax on vapor products and establishing a state registry for approved e-cigarettes.​
• The bill mandates that only FDA-authorized or pending-review vaping products can be sold, effectively banning many popular disposable vapes.​
• Critics argue the legislation favors major tobacco companies and could harm small vape retailers and consumers seeking smoking alternatives.

Tennessee lawmakers have approved legislation imposing a 10% wholesale tax on vapor products and creating a state registry for approved e-cigarettes, marking the state’s first tax on vaping products.​

Senate Bill 763, passed by the House on April 16 and the Senate on April 17, now awaits Governor Bill Lee’s signature. Given the bill’s strong bipartisan support, a veto is considered unlikely.​

Proponents, including Republican sponsors Sen. Ken Yager and Rep. David Hawk, assert the measure aims to protect youth from unregulated vaping products.​

“We need to stop the influx of illegal Chinese vape products that are addicting our children and wrecking their lives,” Yager said during a committee hearing.

Key Provisions of SB 763:

• Imposes a 10% wholesale tax on all vapor products, effective July 1, 2025.​
• Establishes a state directory of legally sellable vapor products, to be publicly available by January 1, 2026.​
• Requires manufacturers to certify by August 1, 2025, under penalty of perjury, that their products meet state requirements and pay a $25 annual fee per product.​
• Mandates that products must have FDA marketing authorization, be under FDA review, or have a marketing denial order that has been stayed or rescinded.​
• Requires that the consumable material of vapor products be processed or blended in the U.S. at an FDA-registered facility, effectively banning products using foreign-made e-liquids.​
• Enforces stricter age verification, requiring ID checks for purchasers appearing under 50 years old.​
• Imposes advertising restrictions, including prohibiting vape product billboards within 1,000 feet of schools, parks, churches, and childcare centers.

Critics, including the Tennessee Smoke Free Association, argue the bill disproportionately benefits major tobacco companies and could force small vape shops out of business. They contend that the legislation limits consumer access to less harmful alternatives to traditional cigarettes.​

“This legislation is more about protecting Big Tobacco profits than improving public health,” the Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association stated.

If signed into law, Tennessee will become the 13th state to implement a PMTA registry, joining others like Alabama, Florida, and Kentucky in regulating vapor products more strictly.​

The Department of Revenue will oversee the implementation, including conducting annual compliance checks and maintaining the product directory.