CIGAR TAX FOR ON-LINE SALES SET TO TAKE EFFECT Editorial by David Garofalo This whole thing began with the growth on the internet and the 1992 Supreme Court case Quill Corp. v. North Dakota, that determined due to the constitutional law, states could not collect sales taxes from purchases made by their residents from out-of-state vendors that did not have a physical presence within that state, barring legislation from the United States Congress that would allow them to […]
The largest manufacturers in the premium cigar industry today filed a 273 page joint comment with the Food & Drug Administration (“FDA”) opposing the agency’s Proposed Substantial Equivalence (“SE”) Rule, which would require manufacturers to submit to an extensive application and testing regime to keep any “non-grandfathered” cigars on the market. In this joint comment, premium cigar manufacturers Davidoff of Geneva USA, Drew Estate, General Cigar Company, Tabacalera USA, Perdomo Cigars, and C.L.E. Cigar Company […]
The state of New Hampshire is about to join the list of states with a Tobacco 21 Law. In budget meetings the House of Representatives had included an exorbitant tax on Vape. The Senate then in turn wanted to lower the tax to make the state competitive with surrounding states. In turn, the House agreed to a lower tax in exchange for Tobacco 21 legislation. A committee of House and Senate lawmakers will put the […]
You can now add Connecticut to the list of states that have raised the Tobacco purchase age to 21 as Democrat Governor Ned Lamont signed HB 7200 into law. The bill had passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 124-22 and the Senate with a tally of 33-3. The new law will see those who sell tobacco to those under 21 fined $300, with a second offense of $750 and a third offense […]
The state of Texas has raised the tobacco age to 21 with Republican Governor Greg Abbott signing Senate Bill 21 into law. The bill had the support of the company JUUL who took full-page advertisements in state newspapers in support of the measure. Altria, the parent company of Nat Sherman Cigars owns a 35% stake in the e-cig company. The bill which takes effect on September 1, 2019 passed the House of Representatives by a […]
You can now add Maryland to the growing list of states that have raised the tobacco purchase age to 21. On Monday May 13th, Maryland Republican Governor signed a bill raising the minimum age to purchase tobacco products in the state to 21-years-old with an exemption for active members the military. HB 1169 passed the House with a vote of 101-35 and the Senate with a vote of 32-13. The new law goes into effect October […]
Back in February 2019 the Arkansas legislature proposed a Tobacco 21 bill called HB 1980. That bill has passed the house by a vote of 31-1 and the Senate 66-9. The new bill bans the purchase of all tobacco products to those under 21 years old while providing an exemption to members of the military and smokers who turn 19 prior to the law taking effect on September 1, 2019. Arkansas is set to become […]
Earlier this year the legislative body of Vermont took up a tobacco 21 bill for 5th consecutive year. This time the Tobacco 21 bill passed the house by a vote of 124-14 after passing in the Senate. The bill now heads to the desk of Republican Governor Phil Scott who is expected to sign the bill pending a review. The new law will go into effect on September 1st, 2019. Under the new law selling […]
The state of Florida saw a bill that would raise the tobacco purchase age in the Sunshine state from 18 to 21 earlier this year. House Speaker Jose Oliva stated the House won’t pass the proposal after the Senate signed off on bill SB 1618. The bill which had the backing of JUUL labs which is partial owned by Altria the parent company of Nat Sherman contained a provision that would have prevented local governments […]
According to a press release from the Government of Canada, the Honourable Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Minister of Health, announced new regulations for plain and standardized appearance of tobacco packages and products will begin to come into force on November 9, 2019. According to the press release, “These packages and products are powerful promotional vehicles. Reducing the appeal of tobacco products is an important step toward protecting Canadians, particularly youth, from inducements to using tobacco products […]