Beginning this week you may have noticed the lack of local legislative news on the website. We will report daily on major cities and pending state legislation. Tyngsboro, MA – The town has voted on the ban of flavored cigars, and has set a minimum purchase price on cigars. It has also outlawed the sale of single cigars and prohibits smoking inside smoke shops, although the town does not have a cigar lounge. Grayson County, […]
You can add the state of Tennessee to the growing movement to raise the tobacco age to 21 across the nation. While Hawaii has become the only state to raise the age, many states have proposed legislation to join suit. The new proposal comes from State Senator Jim Tracy (R-16) who has proposed SB 1973. The bill saw its first reading this week and passed its first consideration. Should it pass into law it would […]
Things could get ugly in the state of New Jersey if S284 gets passed. The bill sponsored by Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex) and Loretta Weinber (D-Bergen) calls for the raising of the OTP tax which includes cigars from 30% to 90% of the wholesale price. Meaning a cigar with the MSRP of $10.00 that currently costs $11.50 in the state would go up to $14.50 per cigar. In addition to hurting the consumer, the bill would be crippling […]
As many states see there legislatures come back to the capital and budgets being due it is the time of year that we see proposed tax hikes. Some of these will pass, and some will not if the community speaks up against them. It is important to let your local officials know you will not vote them back in if they raise taxes. This time around it is Kentucky which has seen the introduction of HB […]
Yesterday we reported on a proposal in the state of Nebraska that would raise the tax on cigars by 55% and today the state is back at it again. Ken Schilz, a Republican from the 47th district has filed LB 727 which calls for a 1% tax on tobacco sales that occur at any retailer who possesses a cigar shop license under the Nebraska Liquor Control Act. The tax would be collected like any other sales tax, and […]
You can add Iowa to the list of states that wants tor raise the minimum tobacco purchase age from 18 to 21-years-old. The new measure was introduced last week by Senator Herman C. Quirmbach, a Democrat from the 23rd district of Iowa. The measure which was introduced by Quirmbach is SF 2016 and prohibits the sale of tobacco products to those under 21. In addition to it being illegal for retailers to sell to those under 21, the […]
New Jersey Republican Governor Chris Christie has chosen not to act on a bill that would have raised the smoking age in NJ from 19 to 21. This is the second time that the Governor has chosen not to pass a bill passed by the New Jersey legislature that would have stripped away the rights for an adult to make an adult decision. The bill would have fined retailers up to $1,000 if they did […]
For the third time in the last three years, Republican Nebraska State Senator Mike Gloor of Grand Island is seeking a tobacco tax increase that would raise the cigar tax 55%. The Bill, LB1013 would raise the tax on cigars and other tobacco products (OTP) from 20% of the wholesale cost to 31%. The change would raise a cigar that has a MSRP of $10.00 that currently costs $11.00 to $11.55. The money that is […]
In the state of Utah the legal age to purchase tobacco is 19 but that could change as bill has been proposed by Rep. Kraig Powell, R-Heber, and Sen. Brian Shiozawa, R-Salt Lake City that would raise set the new age at 21. The bill, H.B. 157 would forbid the sale or distribution of cigarettes, tobacco products or e-cigarettes to anyone under 21. As the bill is currently written a first violation would result in a penalty up […]
In 2015, a similar measure to raise the cigar tax in West Virginia failed. However, as we reported back in September the measure was expected to return in 2016. That time has come as Democrat Governor Earl Ray Tomblin has proposed raising the tobacco tax 42%. In his budget that was submitted to the state legislature, Tomblin called for raising the tobacco tax from 7% to 12%. If the legislature approves the budget, a cigar that has […]