[§132C-3]  Cigarettes; reduced ignition
propensity; manufacturer testing.  (a)  Except as provided in sections 132C-7
and 132C-8, no cigarettes may be sold or offered for sale in this State or
offered for sale or sold to persons located in this State unless the cigarettes
have been tested in accordance with the test method and meet the performance
standard specified in this section, and the manufacturer has filed a written
certification with the state fire council in accordance with section 132C-4(a)
and the cigarettes have been marked in accordance with section 132C-4(b).



(1)  Testing of cigarettes shall be conducted in
accordance with the American Society of Testing and Materials standard E2187-04
"Standard Test Method for Measuring the Ignition Strength of
Cigarettes".  The state fire council may adopt as rules pursuant to
chapter 91, a subsequent American Society of Testing and Materials Standard
Test Method for Measuring the Ignition Strength of Cigarettes upon a finding
that the subsequent method does not result in a change in the percentage of
full-length burns exhibited by any tested cigarette when compared to the
percentage of full-length burns the same cigarette would exhibit when tested in
accordance with American Society of Testing and Materials standard E2187-04 and
the performance standard of this section;



(2)  Testing of cigarettes shall be conducted on ten
layers of filter paper;



(3)  No more than twenty-five per cent of the
cigarettes tested in a test trial shall exhibit full-length burns.  Forty
replicate tests shall constitute a complete test trial for each cigarette
tested;



(4)  The performance standard required by this section
shall only be applied to a complete test trial;



(5)  Written certifications shall be based upon
testing conducted by a laboratory that has been accredited pursuant to standard
ISO/IEC 17025 of the International Organization for
Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission, or other comparable
accreditation standard required by the state fire council;



(6)  Laboratories that conduct tests in accordance
with this section shall implement a quality control and quality assurance
program that includes a procedure to determine the repeatability of the testing
results.  The repeatability value shall be no greater than 0.19;



(7)  Each cigarette listed in a certification that
uses lowered permeability bands in the cigarette paper to achieve compliance
with the performance standard in this section shall have at least two nominally
identical bands on the paper surrounding the tobacco column.  At least one
complete band shall be located at least fifteen millimeters from the lighting
end of the cigarette.  For cigarettes on which the bands are positioned by
design, there shall be at least two bands located at least fifteen millimeters
from the lighting end and ten millimeters from the filter end of the tobacco
column.  In the case of an unfiltered cigarette, the two complete bands shall
be located at least fifteen millimeters from the lighting end and ten
millimeters from the labeled end of the tobacco column; and



(8)  The manufacturer of a cigarette that the state
fire council determines cannot be tested in accordance with the test method
required by this section shall propose to the state fire council a test method
and performance standard for that cigarette.  The state fire council may
approve a test method and performance standard that the state fire council
determines is equivalent to the requirement of this section, and the
manufacturer may use that test method and performance standard for
certification pursuant to section 132C-4.  If the state fire council determines
that another state has enacted reduced cigarette ignition propensity standards
that include a test method and performance standard that are the same as those
contained in this chapter, and the state fire council finds that the officials
responsible for implementing those requirements have approved the proposed
alternative test method and performance standard for a particular cigarette
proposed by a manufacturer as meeting the fire safety standards of that state's
law or regulation under a legal provision comparable to this section, then the
state fire council shall authorize that manufacturer to employ the alternative
test method and performance standard to certify that cigarette for sale in this
State, unless the state fire council demonstrates a reasonable basis why the
alternative test should not be accepted.  All other applicable requirements of
this section shall apply to the manufacturer.



(b)  A manufacturer shall retain copies of the
reports of testing conducted on cigarettes offered for sale in the State for a
period of three years.  The manufacturer shall provide copies of these reports
to the state fire council and the attorney general upon written request.  Any
manufacturer who fails to make copies of these reports available within sixty
days of receiving a written request shall be subject to a civil penalty not to
exceed $10,000 for each day after the sixtieth day that the manufacturer does
not make the copies available.



(c)  This section shall not require additional
testing if cigarettes are tested consistent with this chapter for any other
purpose.



(d)  Testing performed or sponsored by the
state fire council to determine a cigarette's compliance with the performance
standard required by this section shall be conducted in accordance with this
section.



(e)  The state fire council shall review the
effectiveness of this section and report every three years to the legislature
the state fire council's findings and, if appropriate, recommendations for
legislation to improve the effectiveness of this chapter.  The report and
legislative recommendations shall be submitted no later than June 30 following
the conclusion of each three-year period. [L 2008, c 218, pt of §1]