Texas Looks to Fire-Safe Cigarettes

Smoking is the number one cause of home fire deaths in the United States. In Texas, there were 1,880 house fires caused by cigarettes resulting in 10 deaths and losses of more than $14 million in 2006. In response to this problem, Governor Rick Perry signed House Bill (HB) 2935 into law in June 2007 to require that all cigarettes sold in Texas be certified fire standard compliant, or "fire-safe," by Jan. 1, 2009. Fire-safe cigarettes are designed to self-extinguish if they are left unattended or not actively being smoked. Cigarette manufacturers are able to produce fire-safe cigarettes by wrapping the cigarettes with two or three bands of less porous paper. The bands act as "speed bumps" that slow down the burning of the cigarette, causing it to self-extinguish. Enforcement of the fire-safe cigarette law will begin on Jan. 1, 2010. The time interval between the effective date of HB 2935 and the start of enforcement efforts will allow retailers to dispose of their existing inventory of cigarettes. Texas is among 22 states that have passed fire-safe cigarette legislation. The State Fire Marshal's Office, which is a part of the Texas Department of Insurance, will be responsible for all fire-safe cigarette certifications, inspections, and enforcement in Texas. Deaths caused by cigarette-induced fires have reportedly decreased by at least one-third in New York since the state mandated the sale of fire standard compliant cigarettes in 2004. In Oregon in 2006, a tragedy was averted at a nursing home when a resident fell asleep with a lit, fire-safe cigarette. The cigarette self-extinguished, saving the resident’s life and the lives of others working and living in the nursing home.