18 U.S.C. § 1716E Tobacco Products As Nonmailable

• Library: United States Statutes
• Edition: 2023
• Currency: Current through P.L. 118-21 (published on www.congress.gov on 11/13/2023)

(a) PROHIBITION.-

(1) IN GENERAL.-All cigarettes and smokeless tobacco (as those terms are defined in section 1 of the Act of October 19, 1949, commonly referred to as the Jenkins Act) are nonmailable and shall not be deposited in or carried through the mails. The United States Postal Service shall not accept for delivery or transmit through the mails any package that it knows or has reasonable cause to believe contains any cigarettes or smokeless tobacco made nonmailable by this paragraph.

(2) REASONABLE CAUSE.-For the purposes of this subsection reasonable cause includes-

(A) a statement on a publicly available website, or an advertisement, by any person that the person will mail matter which is nonmailable under this section in return for payment; or

(B) the fact that the person is on the list created under section 2A(e) of the Jenkins Act.

(b) EXCEPTIONS.-

(1) CIGARS.-Subsection (a) shall not apply to cigars (as defined in section 5702(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986).

(2) GEOGRAPHIC EXCEPTION.-Subsection (a) shall not apply to mailings within the State of Alaska or within the State of Hawaii.

(3) BUSINESS PURPOSES.-

(A) IN GENERAL.-Subsection (a) shall not apply to tobacco products mailed only-

(i) for business purposes between legally operating businesses that have all applicable State and Federal Government licenses or permits and are engaged in tobacco product manufacturing, distribution, wholesale, export, import, testing, investigation, or research; or

(ii) for regulatory purposes between any business described in clause (i) and an agency of the Federal Government or a State government.

(B) RULES.-

(i) IN GENERAL.-Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act of 2009, the Postmaster General shall issue a final rule which shall establish the standards and requirements that apply to all mailings described in subparagraph (A).

(ii) CONTENTS.-The final rule issued under clause (i) shall require-

(I) the United States Postal Service to verify that any person submitting an otherwise nonmailable tobacco product into the mails as authorized under this paragraph is a business or government agency permitted to make a mailing under this paragraph;

(II) the United States Postal Service to ensure that any recipient of an otherwise nonmailable tobacco product sent through the mails under this paragraph is a business or government agency that may lawfully receive the product;

(III) that any mailing described in subparagraph (A) shall be sent through the systems of the United States Postal Service that provide for the tracking and confirmation of the delivery;

(IV) that the identity of the business or government entity submitting the mailing containing otherwise nonmailable tobacco products for delivery and the identity of the business or government entity receiving the mailing are clearly set forth on the package;

(V) the United States Postal Service to maintain identifying information described in subclause (IV) during the 3-year period beginning on the date of the mailing and make the information available to the Postal Service, the Attorney General of the United States, and to persons eligible to bring enforcement actions under section 3(d) ¹ of the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act of 2009;

(VI) that any mailing described in subparagraph (A) be marked with a United States Postal Service label or marking that makes it clear to employees of the United States Postal Service that it is a permitted mailing of otherwise nonmailable tobacco products that may be delivered only to a permitted government agency or business and may not be delivered to any residence or individual person; and