Rep. Donald L. Moffitt
Filed: 3/3/2010
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| 1 | AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 5139
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| 2 | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 5139 by replacing | ||||||
| 3 | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
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| 4 | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||||
| 5 | Retail Sale and Distribution of Novelty Lighters Prohibition | ||||||
| 6 | Act. | ||||||
| 7 | Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds that | ||||||
| 8 | novelty lighters have features that are attractive to children, | ||||||
| 9 | including visual effects, flashing lights, musical sounds, and | ||||||
| 10 | toy-like designs. Thousands of novelty lighters have been | ||||||
| 11 | recalled because of the danger they present to public safety. | ||||||
| 12 | The setting of fires by juveniles has been identified as the | ||||||
| 13 | fastest growing fire threat in the United States, with more | ||||||
| 14 | than 300 people killed annually, 30% of whom are children, and | ||||||
| 15 | almost $1 billion in property has been destroyed. | ||||||
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| 1 | Section 10. Definition. For the purposes of this Act, | ||||||
| 2 | "novelty lighter" means a mechanical or electrical device | ||||||
| 3 | typically used for lighting cigarettes, cigars, or pipes that | ||||||
| 4 | is designed to resemble a cartoon character, toy, gun, watch, | ||||||
| 5 | musical instrument, vehicle,
animal, food or beverage, or | ||||||
| 6 | similar articles, or that plays musical notes, or has flashing
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| 7 | lights, or has other entertaining features. A novelty lighter | ||||||
| 8 | may operate on any fuel,
including butane, isobutene, or liquid | ||||||
| 9 | fuel. "Novelty lighter" does not include any of the following: | ||||||
| 10 | (1) A lighter manufactured before January 1, 1980. | ||||||
| 11 | (2) A lighter incapable of being fueled or lacking a | ||||||
| 12 | device necessary to produce combustion or a flame. | ||||||
| 13 | (3) Any mechanical or electrical device primarily used | ||||||
| 14 | to ignite fuel for fireplaces or for charcoal or gas | ||||||
| 15 | grills. | ||||||
| 16 | (4) Standard disposable and refillable lighters that | ||||||
| 17 | are printed or decorated with logos, labels, decals, or | ||||||
| 18 | artwork, or heat-shrinkable sleeves. | ||||||
| 19 | Section 15. Prohibition against novelty lighters. A person | ||||||
| 20 | may not sell at retail or distribute for retail sale in this | ||||||
| 21 | State a novelty lighter. The prohibition specified in this | ||||||
| 22 | Section does not apply to the transportation of novelty | ||||||
| 23 | lighters through this State or the storage of novelty lighters | ||||||
| 24 | in a warehouse or distribution center in this State that is | ||||||
| 25 | closed to the public for purposes of retail sales. | ||||||
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| 1 | Section 20. Violation. A violation of Section 15 is a | ||||||
| 2 | petty offense, for which a fine not to exceed $500 for each | ||||||
| 3 | offense may be imposed. Each day that a person violates Section | ||||||
| 4 | 15 is a separate offense. A person who is employed as a clerk | ||||||
| 5 | by a retail establishment shall not be in violation of this Act | ||||||
| 6 | unless he or she sells a novelty lighter with the intent to | ||||||
| 7 | violate this Act. | ||||||
| 8 | Section 25. Enforcement. This Act may be enforced by the | ||||||
| 9 | Office of the State Fire
Marshal, by a State, county, or | ||||||
| 10 | municipal law enforcement officer, or by a municipal
code | ||||||
| 11 | enforcement officer.
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| 12 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
| 13 | becoming law.".
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