Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 9, September 1, 2024
(1) In exercising the discretion granted by
ORS 180.425(2), the
Attorney General will consider the following:
(a) Whether the entity tendering a
certification is a tobacco product manufacturer;
(b) Timeliness of the certification made by
the tobacco product manufacturer;
(c) Completeness, or lack thereof, of the
certification made by the tobacco product manufacturer;
(d) Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
has provided all requested documents supporting its certification;
(e) Whether the certification is based on
misrepresentation, false information, nondisclosure or concealment of
facts;
(f) Whether the tobacco
product manufacturer is in full compliance with all provisions of Local, State
and Federal Law, including but not limited to the provisions of ORS
180.410,
180.415 and
323.800 to
323.806.
(g) Whether the tobacco product manufacturer,
predecessor of the tobacco product manufacturer, or previous manufacturer of
the brand is the subject of an injunction obtained by the State of Oregon for
previous failure to comply with the nonparticipating manufacturer
statutes;
(h) Whether the tobacco
product manufacturer has failed to fully or timely fund a qualified escrow fund
approved by the Attorney General;
(i) Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
has failed to fully or timely make required equity assessment
payments;
(j) Whether all final
judgments and penalties, including interest, costs and attorney fees thereon,
in favor of the State of Oregon, or any political subdivision thereof, for
violation of any Oregon statute, administrative rule or other law, including
but not limited to violations of ORS
323.800 to
323.806, have been fully
satisfied for the name, brand family, or tobacco product
manufacturer;
(k) Whether the
tobacco product manufacturer has corrected deficiencies in its certification or
criteria set forth in this section in a timely and thorough manner;
(l) Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
has complied in a timely and thorough manner with any request by the Attorney
General pursuant to ORS
180.435 for additional
information or documentation or the criteria set forth in this
section;
(m) Whether a
nonparticipating manufacturer has posted a sufficient bond required by ORS
180.416;
(n) Whether a nonparticipating manufacturer
has provided the Attorney General with an importer declaration required by ORS
323.806 and Oregon Laws 2023,
chapter 401, section 8 for all importers who sell cigarettes manufactured by
the non-participating manufacturer into this state; and
(o) Any other facts or circumstances the
Attorney General determines are relevant.
(2) In a manner provided in subsection (5) of
this rule, the Attorney General shall remove a tobacco product manufacturer or
brand family from the directory if the Attorney General determines that the
tobacco product manufacturer or the brand family no longer meets the
requirements of ORS 180.410 and
180.415.
(3) In the manner provided in subsection (5)
of this rule, the Attorney General shall reject the application of a tobacco
product manufacturer or brand family to be listed in the directory if the
Attorney General determines that the tobacco product manufacturer or the brand
family does not meet the requirements of ORS
180.410 and
180.415.
(4) The Attorney General shall promptly
notify a tobacco product manufacturer in writing (via email or regular mail) if
the manufacturer has met the requirements of ORS
180.410 and
180.415 and will be included in
the directory. The notice shall include each brand family that the Attorney
General determines will be included in the directory.
(5) If, on or after the effective date of
these rules, the Attorney General intends to deny a tobacco product
manufacturer or brand family a place in the directory, to remove a manufacturer
or brand family from the directory, or to exclude an entity because the entity
is not a tobacco product manufacturer, the Attorney General shall mail a
written Notice of Intended Action to the manufacturer or entity. The Notice of
Intended Action shall specify:
(a) The factual
and legal basis upon which the Attorney General's intended action
rests;
(b) The actions that the
tobacco product manufacturer or entity must complete to cure the factual or
legal deficiencies upon which the intended action is based; and,
(c) The date upon which attempts to cure the
deficiencies must be completed and documentation of completion must be
submitted to the Attorney General. In no event shall the Attorney General allow
the tobacco product manufacturer or entity less than 15 days within which to
cure the deficiencies upon which the Attorney General's intended action is
based.
(6) On or before
the deadline set in the Notice of Intended Action, the tobacco product
manufacturer or entity shall provide documentation to the Attorney General
detailing the actions, if any, that the tobacco product manufacturer or entity
has taken to cure the deficiencies identified by the Attorney General in the
Notice of Intended Action.
(7)
Within 45 days of the date on which a certification that is the subject of a
Notice of Intent is received, the Attorney General shall determine whether the
deficiencies have been cured.
(a) If the
deficiencies have been cured to the satisfaction of the Attorney General, the
Attorney General shall promptly notify a tobacco product manufacturer in
writing (via email or regular mail) that the manufacturer or brand family will
be included in the directory.
(b)
If any of the deficiencies have not been cured to the satisfaction of the
Attorney General, the Attorney General shall promptly issue an order in Other
than Contested Case denying a manufacturer, brand family, or entity a place in
the directory.
(8) A
tobacco product manufacturer or entity that has complied with subsection (6) of
this rule and is aggrieved by an Order denying the manufacturer or brand family
a place in the directory may file a petition for judicial review of the
Attorney General's order as provided in ORS
183.484.
(9) The Attorney General may, for any reason
and at the Attorney General's discretion, extend any period allowed by these
rules.
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS
180.445
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS
180.445 & Oregon Laws 2023,
chapter 401, section 8
