State’s $1-Per-Pack Cigarette Tax Hike Goes Into Effect

Illinois smokers are bracing for a $1-per-pack increase on cigarette taxes that takes effect Sunday, with many trying to stock up and others vowing to kick the habit. The tax on a pack of cigarettes will jump from 98 cents to $1.98, a move lawmakers and health advocates say will generate desperately needed revenue for the state while cutting smoking rates. “Every research organization that’s looked at this … has concluded that raising price is one of the most effective ways to reduce tobacco use, especially among young people,” said Danny McGoldrick, vice president of research for the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, a nationwide anti-smoking organization.

 The group estimates the increase will prevent 72,700 Illinois kids from becoming smokers and cause 53,400 adults to quit smoking while raising $350 million per year in new revenue. Gov. Pat Quinn said the increase could help offset Medicaid cuts. Lorraine Harvey, assistant manager at Discount Tobacco in Peoria, said she personally plans to try to quit smoking rather than pay more. She and other retailers also hear customers talking about making a run for the border. The cigarette tax in neighboring Missouri is just 17 cents, the lowest in the nation.

 “You’re literally sending business away from Illinois,” Mike Saurs, co-owner of the Cornerstore on Main, told the (Peoria) Journal Star. Meanwhile, so many smokers have been stocking up that distributors are having trouble meeting demand. Harvey got only 127 cartons in a recent shipment that normally would have at least 200, so she limited her customers to two cartons apiece until the tax increase takes effect. “It’s going to be a zoo in here,” Harvey said. McGoldrick, the anti-smoking advocate, hopes low-tax states like Missouri will follow Illinois’ example and raise taxes, too. “That’s the best solution for everybody,” he said.

Lawsuit filed over ‘roll your own’ cigarette tax

The roll-your-own tobacco industry said this morning that they are filing a lawsuit against a measure that would tax their product like retail cigarettes. Roll-your-own machines let customers produce a carton of cigarettes for about half the cost of what they’d pay for those sold at retail stores.

A law passed earlier this year would begin taxing these cigarettes like retail smokes, as of July 1. The group filing the lawsuit argues that this “raises taxes,” and therefore should have required a 2/3 vote to pass, due to Initiative 1053. Supporters of taxing roll-your-own smokes as retail cigarettes say the law closes a loophole, and argue that the products are essentially the same.

 The lawsuit was filed in Franklin County by a local resident and consumer, a Benton County tobacco retailer, and RYO Machine – the major supplier of the machines.

Better tax administration to help cut smuggling of tobacco products

FTER the government banned cigarette manufacturers from joining in the bidding process, PMFTC Corp. said there is no need for a stamp tax technology to combat smuggling of tobacco products as the government can implement better tax-administration measures. PMFTC President Chris Nelson said tax administration can be improved even without the aid of any technology that would ensure payment of excise tax on so-called sin tax products, such as cigarettes. “You can improve tax administration today without that [system]. I think that’s an area that needs to be focused on even without any type of bidding,”

Nelson told a press briefing last week. Internal Revenue Commissioner Kim Henares earlier said cigarette companies are disqualified from participating in the bidding of a security stamp tax or similar technology on cigarette products. PMFTC, the combined firms of Philip Morris Philippines and Lucio Tan’s Fortune Tobacco, also earlier offered its own security version of the stamp-tax technology known as “Codentify.”

 It said its technology, which uses a numeric bar-code system, costs only 10 centavos per pack or less than the 62 centavos-a-pack unsolicited offer of Swiss product security firm SICPA Product Security SA. China’s Huagong Tech Co. Ltd. submitted a similar proposal at P0.52 centavos a pack. PMFTC controls over 95 percent of the Philippine tobacco market, which consumes about 100 billion to 150 billion sticks of cigarette a year. Nelson said PMFTC will still review the legal grounds invoked by the Bureau of Internal Revenue in disqualifying them. “We will study the matter carefully.

I think that the PMFTC has always tried to work with the BIR and the Department of Finance [DOF] in improving tax administration. We will continue to do so, and we stand ready to assist,” he added. “[The government needs to] decide what system will truly benefit the government, not just something that could be counterfeited easily,” Nelson said. Henares also earlier said BIR will cite the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, to which the country is a signatory, as legal basis for the disqualification of the cigarette manufacturers. The BIR said it hopes to complete the bidding process for the stamp-tax technology by the end of the year but the terms of reference of the measure still have to be published.

East Ridge officials consider ban on tobacco products

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East Ridge City officials are looking to clear the air on public property, by placing a ban on the use of tobacco products. "We had a number of complaints from citizens of people smoking around the children and things like that at the park, and that was something we looked at," East Ridge City Manager Tim Gobble tells Channel 3. The result, a measure that would ban the use of all tobacco products, even chew and snuff, on East Ridge property, including city vehicles. "Now, it doesn't include city streets or city sidewalks," Gobble says.

"That was specifically exempted." The goals, says the city manager, are to promote a healthier lifestyle for employees, to eventually bring down insurance costs and to create an environment all can enjoy in public spaces. "I feel it's about time they got involved," says Vincent Dave. Vincent Dave and Marquis Creech are YMCA summer counselors. We caught them supervising an energetic group of kids at Pioneer Park, where they have seen adults smoking in the past.

 "I do see that around and I think it's not a very healthy thing to do, because it's sending a bad message to our children," Creech says. "It's very unhealthy for the kids," Dave says. "They run into a cloud of smoke, for all I know they could have asthma, and that could make them choke and pass out and I don't want that." Gobble says employees would receive warnings before more severe punishments were handed down.

 For the general public, the ordinance provides for $50 citations to city court. "We don't anticipate a lot of those citations tying up police resources," Gobble says. "Most people, if informed, see it on a sign or if informed that there's no smoking on city property, will gladly put it out." A second reading for the East Ridge "no tobacco" ordinance comes on the June 28.

Manitoba Suing Tobacco Companies

Manitoba has joined a group of provinces who are suing tobacco companies. Legislation has been passed allowing the provincial government to take the action. Similar legislation has been introduced in British Columbia, Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. "Smoking has put extraordinary financial pressure on our health-care system in treating tobacco related illnesses," said Premier Greg Selinger.

In a news release, the province announced the lawsuit will seek to recover the costs the health-care system has incurred as a result of the tobacco industry’s misrepresentations and deceptive practices, but stopped short of saying how much is being sought in damages. Defendants in the lawsuit include Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc., Philip Morris U.S.A. Inc., Philip Morris International Inc., JTI-Macdonald Corp., R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco International Inc., Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. and British American Tobacco P.L.C. According to the Canadian Cancer Society, Manitoba has one of the highest smoking rates in Canada at 21 per cent for men and women.

University calls for tobacco-free policy

A special Tobacco Task Force, authorized by Provost John Antel, finalized its proposal Friday for a transition to a tobacco-free campus beginning this fall and will present it later this week to UH President Renu Khator and a committee of University vice presidents as well as the University Coordinating Commission. “A new UH tobacco policy will be recommended this week,” said Assistant Vice President of University Health Initiatives Kathryn Peek in a special report at the Student Government Association Senate meeting June 6.

“We expect a quick turnaround from the president, but it may take longer for a response from the UCC.” Provost Antel charged the University Health Initiatives in March to create the UH Tobacco Task Force. In April, Khator requested a recommendation by June for an update to current tobacco policies, which already set specific restrictions on smoking on campus. Peek and Assistant Vice President for Health and Wellness Floyd Robinson were appointed co-chairs of the task force. “The provost wanted us to create a campus-wide policy to reduce health risks for all members of the UH community, which includes students, faculty, staff and visitors, but that still respects the civil rights of individuals,” Peek said. These changes stem from a state rule passed in January requiring certification of a tobacco-free policy for any institution receiving funds from the Cancer Prevention Research Institution of Texas. To date, UH has received $6.9 million from CPRIT, Peek said.

In order to continue receiving these funds for research initiatives, the University must abide by this new requirement. “We have a very high and reasonable expectation that many more million dollars are coming our way over the next few years,” Peek said. “We have been actively recruiting and bringing in some high-power, talented cancer researchers to take advantage of this opportunity.” The proposed policy will be based largely on the University of Texas Austin policy enacted in April and will prohibit the use, sale, advertising and sampling of all tobacco products on the UH main campus and at the Energy Research Park. It will allow for a one-year transition period where a small number of temporarily designated tobacco-use areas will be set up.

 “We’ll be having working groups going on to make sure we have a comprehensive education/communication campaign to inform the whole UH community about the new policy and the availability for smoking cessation services,” Peek said. In February, UH submitted a grant application to CPRIT requesting $150,000 over two years to cover the cost of providing smoking cessation services to students, which would include anything from therapy to providing nicotine patches. CPRIT is expected to respond to this application before the end of June.

 “If we are going to have a tobacco free policy on this campus, we have to help people who want to quit (do so). And that’s a part of the policy,” Peek said. Questions were brought up at the SGA Senate meeting June 6 about tobacco users who live on campus. The task force is still deliberating how to handle these types of issues. Once the proposal is presented and accepted, the new policy will be announced at the end of the summer and will go into effect in the fall.

SUNY trustees push for tobacco free campuses

Lighting up on a SUNY campus may soon be illegal. State University of New York Board of Trustees has passed a resolution to ban the use of tobacco(link to source) anywhere on campus grounds. “We’re on an open campus. It’s state property, so I don’t see why we shouldn’t be able to as long as we abide by the rules,” said SUNY New Paltz employee David Ferris. The resolution would include all 64 SUNY campuses statewide. Trustees cite health concerns as well as safety as reasons for their decision.

 In the resolution, they highlight studies that show young people ages 18 to 24 have the highest smoking rates of all adults. The trustees also note that smoking increases the risks of fires. “I think that it’s kind of someone’s right to be able to smoke outside if they want to but I understand when people choose not to smoke then they shouldn’t have to inhale that,” said Bailey Weinstein, a student at SUNY New Paltz. New Paltz, like all other SUNY campuses, currently prohibits smoking inside buildings, dorms or other facilities, but allows it outside.

However, officials like Judy Eurich support a complete smoking ban. “We really do support anything that is going to help the wellbeing of our students, faculty and staff,” said Judy Eurich, SUNY New Paltz Media Relations Manager. Not outlined in the resolution is enforcement. “People do rebel and I think that people will start doing it and it will become an issue,” said New Paltz student Pamela Weatherly. The resolution will now go to the legislature for its vote before going to Governor Cuomo. If passed, SUNY would become the country’s largest public university system to adopt such a ban.