Office of the Attorney General and Reporter
Robert E. Cooper, Jr.

Tennessee consumers may be eligible for refunds as part of a multistate agreement announced today by Attorney General Bob Cooper and Division of Consumer Affairs Director Mary Clement regarding Internet-based telephone service provider VONAGE. 

The States announced today that VONAGE, one of the nation’s largest providers of a service known as “Voice over Internet Protocol,” an Internet-based phone service, has agreed to pay the 32 states a total of $3 million. Tennessee’s share is $45,000 in addition to restitution as part of the agreement approved by Circuit Judge Hamilton Gayden today. The total amount of restitution is not yet known. The company has also agreed to make significant changes to its marketing practices, honor consumer cancellation requests, and provide refunds to eligible consumers...read the full VONAGE press release.

Tennessee Attorney General Bob Cooper on behalf of Mary Clement, director of the Division of Consumer Affairs, today joined several other jurisdictions supporting the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) crackdown on alcoholic energy drinks (AEDs). The FDA recently asked that manufacturers of these products provide support for their claims that the use of caffeine and other stimulants in alcoholic beverages are Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) under FDA regulations. 

Several attorneys general including Tennessee’s recently wrote to the FDA to ask that it take stronger action to ensure the caffeinated alcoholic drinks are safe for consumption under FDA regulations. Although none of the AEDs are made in Tennessee, the products, going by names such as Joose, Four Loko and Four Maxed, are sold in a variety of stores in Tennessee. They are also advertised on the Internet and at the point of purchase in convenience and drug stores...read the full alcoholic energy drinks press release.

Several Tennessee agencies are working together to help alert the public and businesses to stop the illegal sale of cigarettes that are removed from the pack and sold individually as “loosies.” Single cigarette sales pose a health threat to young people because they are usually easier and cheaper for them to purchase than a full package of cigarettes.

An individual can buy a single cigarette for about 25 cents, compared with a pack of cigarettes, which can cost more than $5 per pack. Health officials are concerned that the availability of individual cigarette sales for purchase may attract young people as an easy, affordable way to begin smoking.

The Attorney General’s Office recently sent 23 tobacco retailers alleged to have sold single cigarettes a warning letter, advising them to stop because such action is illegal in Tennessee. The letters were based on complaints received by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture. Tobacco retailers may be subject to penalties of up to $1,000 per violation under the law for selling single cigarettes....read the full single cigarette sales press release