July 31, 2015
New England, ND
Honorable Wayne Stenehjem
Attorney General
State Capitol
600 East Boulevard Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58505
Dear Mr. Stenehjem,
Greetings! I am writing to you as a member of the Legislative Assembly to request your opinion about what I consider to be an overreach of government by Ms. Jeanne Prom, Executive Director, North Dakota Center for Tobacco Prevention and Control Policy.
Measure 3, effective December 4, of 2008, which created North Dakota Century Code Chapter 2342, does not mention the words “vaping” or “ecigarettes” but Ms. Prom has decided that smoking cigarettes and vaping are fundamentally the same.
Money from the tobacco settlement is being spent by the North Dakota Center for Tobacco Prevention and Control Policy to discourage the use of ecigarettes in the form of literature, verbal communication, and advertising. I am concerned this activity constitutes the use of state dollars for a purpose that has not been approved by the Legislative Assembly.
Therefore, I am requesting an opinion from you regarding whether this activity is legal and whether Ms. Prom has the authority to discourage use of nontobacco products that she considers to be harmful such as ecigarettes.
Thank you for your assistance in this matter.
Yours truly,
Mike Schatz
State Representative
