Georgia AG Joins Coalition Against Illegal Chinese Vapes
Summary
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr joined a coalition of 13 state attorneys general in sending a letter to major credit card networks urging them to stop processing payments for illegal vape products. The letter targets Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover, requesting they identify and remove merchants selling illicit vapes from their payment networks. The coalition states that illegal Chinese vapes account for over 80 percent of the U.S. vape market with $11 billion in annual retail sales, and argues that payment processors are the only distribution channel for these products.
“The attorneys general are asking Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover to stop the flow of these illegal and unsafe products.”
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GovPing monitors AG: Georgia Press Releases for new courts & legal regulatory changes. Every update since tracking began is archived, classified, and available as free RSS or email alerts — 10 changes logged to date.
What changed
Georgia AG Chris Carr and 12 other state attorneys general issued a coalition letter to the four major U.S. payment card networks urging them to deplatform merchants selling illegal vaping products manufactured in China. The letter cites data that illegal Chinese vapes represent over 80 percent of the U.S. vape market and generate more than $11 billion in annual retail sales. The AGs argue that payment processors are the essential mechanism enabling distribution of these products and are requesting that Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover identify and remove illicit vape merchants from their networks.\n\nPayment processors, vape retailers, and financial institutions should monitor whether card networks voluntarily comply with this request. The letter invokes a 2005 precedent in which state AGs and the ATF successfully worked with payment card networks to stop illegal internet cigarette sales. While the letter is non-binding, it signals heightened regulatory attention on the payment processing ecosystem as an enforcement channel for product safety violations, and companies facilitating vape sales may face reputational or commercial pressure from coalition activism.
Archived snapshot
Apr 23, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
ATLANTA, GA – **** Georgia **** Attorney General Chris Carr has joined a coalition of 13 attorneys general in sending a letter to credit card companies urging them to stop the sale of illegal vape products facilitated through their payment card networks.
Illegal vapes, overwhelmingly manufactured in China, now account for almost all of the U.S. vape market – generating over $11 billion in annual retail sales and comprising more than 80 percent of all vape sales nationwide. The only way those illegal products can be distributed is through financial institutions and payment processors. In short, thousands of unauthorized e-cigs and vapes continue to use these platforms to facilitate illegal transactions of illegal products. Distributing and selling these products violates many federal and state laws.
“These illegal Chinese vapes are putting our children at risk, and we must do all we can to protect them,” said Carr. “We have been fighting this issue since day one – pushing back on the Biden administration’s FDA, advocating for stronger laws in Georgia, and warning our convenience stores not to put profit over safety. Now, we’re asking payment processors to work with us to stop the flow of illegal, candy-flavored vapes once and for all.”
The attorneys general are asking Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover to stop the flow of these illegal and unsafe products. There is a strong precedent for public-private cooperation in this area. In 2005, state attorneys general and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives successfully worked with payment card networks to stop the illegal sale of cigarettes over the internet.
The states urge the credit card companies to identify and remove merchants that sell illicit vapes from their networks and to publicize what steps they have taken so far to combat this problem.
In addition to Carr, this Iowa-led letter is joined by the attorneys general of Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, and West Virginia.
Find a copy of the letter here (PDF, 440.89 KB).
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