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South Carolina Takes Aim
This past Sunday, The Charleston Post and Courier newspaper wrote an editorial saying that the state of South Carolina should increase its taxes on cigarette tobacco from 7 cents to more than 171 percent, or $1.27 per pack. The newspaper said the money generated from the increased tax on the people who can least afford to... »
Tobacco States Face Change
The changing face of the Old Dominion can be seen in the stuff Jimmy Cirrito sweeps up off the floor of his bar every night. It used to be cigarette butts — now it’s gum. “I got Nicorette and Bubblicious and green and yellow and purple. It looks like a circus down there,” said Cirrito, owner... »
Cigarette Smuggling on Increase
You knew it had tol happen. . . . again. . . . and again. . . .and again. You tax a product to death, like tobacco, and the bad guys will find a way to make a profit from it. Take cigarette smuggling. Some of the money, the Associated Press says, is getting to islamist... »
Greece Smokers Fight Back
Now, here is a novel idea: Greece bar and restaurant owners are rebelling against the smoking ban. Check out this BBC video. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/8503444.stm?ls »
McCranie’s Joins the Fight
McCranie’s has just joined the fight: Look at this email from the popular retailer in Charlotte, N.C.: McCranie’s Stop The Tax! A new bill in Congress would raise the tax on pipe tobacco by 775% from $2.8311 to $24.78 per pound. H.R. 4439, the Tobacco Tax Parity Act of 2010 was introduced on January 13, 2010. Below is a... »
Pipe Tobacco Faces 775% Tax
Kevin Godbee at PipesMagazine.com has just sent an important notice for all of us. Here it is: “We just found out about a proposed 775% tax increase on pipe tobacco! “A new bill would raise the tax on pipe tobacco from $2.8311 to $24.78 per pound. “Obviously, this is ludicrous, and there is no way we can... »
Tobacco Contest is Fini!
News Bulletin All good things come to an end. Don’t know who said that, maybe Zeno. He’s the guy running around with Zeus and those fellows who was saying: the only thing consistent about change is change itself. He was a pretty decent politician of his time. Anyway, the pipe tobacco contest has come to an... »
Tobacco Busters Taking Aim
When you need a tax increase, who you gonna call? Tobacco Busters. When you need to balance a bloated legislative budget, who you gonna call? Tobacco Busters. When your revenues are failing because of bad political policies, who you gonna call? Tobacco Busters. That play off of the old “Ghostbusters” movie may sound silly, friends, but the... »
Nasty Tax Laws on Horizon
You need to check out the International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers web site. Some nasty tax legislation is working itself up in state legislatures. For example, in North Carolina, an excise tax increase on cigarettes and other tobacco products, or House Bill 640, is up for legislative review. A bill summary provided by IPCPR says... »
Work-Arounds Begin
The Work-arounds have begun. The Associated Press has released a story about how the importer, Kretek International Inc., which has 97 percent of the American clove cigarette market, is moving to bypass the FDA ban on clove smokes. It’s a novel approach, and you will see more of this as time goes on. Kretek brings the... »