VTA Insider September 2026: At the State and Federal Levels, VTA is fighting for you
Published on September 25, 2026
Welcome back to VTA Insider – your trusted source for the latest developments shaping the vapor and nicotine industries.
From in-the-room insights in Washington, D.C. to real-time updates from the front lines in state legislatures, VTA Insider keeps you informed on the policies, threats, and victories that directly impact your business and consumers.
A Message From VTA’s Executive Director
VTA is leading the fight to defend the flavored nicotine vaping industry at the state and federal levels.
The future of this industry is being shaped right now. Join VTA and help ensure independent businesses and adult consumers have a voice in that process. Join us today
VTA in Dallas: 2026 Midterm RNC Convention
The Big Picture. The political season is in full swing, and VTA was everywhere at the first-of-its-kind Midterm RNC Convention in Dallas in mid-September. We were consistently placed amongst the most influential participants, enabling us to communicate our core issues and messages.
Executive Director Tony Abboud and Board Member Jon Glauser met with Trump administration and Congressional officials to explain the impact of vaping voters in the 2024 election and how millions of Americans are calling for real and lasting reform of the broken vaping regulations.
What We’re Saying. Our message of the need for action to the highest levels of the White House, the FDA, and members of Congress. By explaining how their actions affect the independent vaping industry, and American consumers, we made a strong case for immediate reform to the PMTA process and for replacing it with transparent, science-based regulations.
What We Learned. We are closer than we’ve ever been to the change this industry needs. VTA is in the right rooms, engaging with the right people, and communicating our case effectively. Our team has already encouraged some of the most consequential changes to federal policy governing our industry, and we’re not done.
High Profile Messaging. VTA coordinated a high-profile, high-impact digital advertising campaign to ensure that RNC attendees were inundated with our messaging. This effort included mobile billboards roving all of the convention sites, digital takeovers across key news outlets, Truth Social, and X, and other display ads.
The Big Picture. VTA launched a 7-figure cable, broadcast, and digital campaign urging President Trump and Secretary Kennedy to act now to save flavored vaping. We are sending a clear and direct message: the entire industry is calling for change, and the time to act is now.
Watch the Ad
What We’re Saying. “President Trump and Secretary Kennedy have a historic opportunity to save flavored vaping, and the time to seize it is now,” said Tony Abboud, our Executive Director. “Replacing this broken [PMTA] regulation with clear scientific guidance will unleash billions in American investment, protect thousands of jobs, and give adults access to the safer alternatives they choose.” Read the full press release here.
Having an Impact. Here is a must-read from The Wall Street Journal: “U.S. Regulators Plan Major Move to Speed Authorizations of Vapes, Tobacco Pouches.” This article states that the Administration is planning on making major changes to the tobacco regulatory landscape, including revisiting the disastrous PMTA Rule and streamlining the regulations governing harm reduction products.
State of the States
What We’re Doing. Across the country, the independent vaping industry’s only national coordinated state lobbying strategy is in full force.
VTA is reviewing the expanded legal definition of nicotine, including references to nicotinic alkaloids and analogues, to better understand how the change will operate with North Carolina’s registry and certification requirements.
- Alabama. Starting October 1, 2026, Alabama will tax consumable vapor products at $0.10 per milliliter, applied to wholesale sales or products imported for retail sale, use, or consumption in the state.
- Wholesalers and retailers who collect and remit this tax must register for a Vapor Products Tax License with the Alabama Department of Revenue. Registration opens October 1 via My Alabama Taxes and is free. Monthly returns and payments are due by the 20th of the following month. Filers who pay on time get a 4.75% discount.
- Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania established a statewide ENDS directory, which was scheduled to be published on June 20, 2026. Beginning October 19, the Commonwealth may seize products not included on the official list. VTA continues to monitor implementation and enforcement of the new requirements.
- Virginia. Virginia’s Vape Enforcement Act took effect on July 1, expanding the Attorney General’s authority over vape and tobacco product compliance and providing for additional inspections and enforcement. VTA has met with Attorney General Jay Jones and the Virginia ABC regulatory office to discuss implementation and compliance.
- Indiana. Indiana’s Senate Bill 185 changed requirements related to tobacco and electronic cigarette sales, including requiring a certificate for wholesale sales. VTA continues to monitor implementation of the new requirements and their impact on vapor product businesses.
- North Carolina. North Carolina’s recent budget technical corrections legislation changed the effective date for new definitions involving nicotine analogues and specialty retailers from July 1, 2027, to October 1, 2026.
- The legislation also revised the federal-enforcement language used for registry eligibility. It replaces the prior phrase “otherwise marketed pursuant to a published FDA enforcement policy” with language referring to products that are “commercially marketed and are not subject to federal enforcement priority under a published FDA enforcement policy.”
- VTA is reviewing the expanded legal definition of nicotine, including references to nicotinic alkaloids and analogues, to better understand how the change will operate with North Carolina’s registry and certification requirements.
Protect Your House: To learn more about what we’re doing to protect your state, become a member of VTA today!
Must Reads
Check out these other voices calling for real reform of vaping regulations:
- The promise Trump still has to keep, American Thinker
- Republicans Need to Keep Campaign Promises, RealClear Policy
- FDA Should Follow Science, Allow Vaping, Daily Caller
- Something Worse Than $4 Gas, The American Spectator
- President Donald J. Trump should make FDA keep vaping vow, The Opinion Pages
Protect Your House: To learn more about what we’re doing to protect your state, become a member of VTA today!
Join VTA Today and Stand with Us in this Fight
VTA is your voice in Washington and at the state level, where Big Tobacco continues to spend millions of dollars to pressure regulators into giving them what they want while sidelining independent vape. Our advocacy matters now more than ever. We have an opportunity to create real reform, but only if we speak with one voice.
Our work to build relationships within the Trump administration has ensured that we are viewed as the best-positioned ally to help them solve the regulatory challenges that have long plagued this industry. This level of impact only happens when our industry supports our mission.
VTA is fighting every day to protect flavored vaping products, defend harm reduction, and ensure a predictable future for our American independent vaping businesses.
But we can’t do it alone. Become a member AND a champion in the fight to save flavored vapes!
Stay tuned. Stay tuned in with us for lots of new developments, and make sure your friends and colleagues are signed up here to receive our news and information.
Got questions? If you have any questions about the issues we have covered, have suggestions for content, or how you can support our efforts, please feel free to contact us at info@vaportechnology.org.
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