INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Senate has passed a bill overhauling an existing law that created a monopoly in the vaping industry and sparked an FBI probe.
Sen. Randy Head’s measure effectively guts a 2016 law that allowed one security firm to play gatekeeper over the industry. A federal appellate court struck down portions of the law last month.
The Logansport Republican’s bill was approved on a 49-1 vote and now goes to the House for consideration.
Lawmakers approved last year’s vaping law ostensibly to ensure consumer safety. It imposed strict safety standards for manufacturers of the nicotine-laced “e-liquid” used in vaping.
But Lafayette-based Mulhaupt’s Inc. was the only company qualified to handle security permitting for producers under the law. And the company drew scrutiny when only six companies were approved to produce.
