Cigars, Cigar Information and where to find Premium Cigars, Discounted Cigars and even Cheap Cigars

SMOKE FREE OR DIE!

Plus: Federal tobacco taxes being planned to pay for children’s health insurance!

Los Angeles, July 12 – Michael Tarnowicz is mad as hell and isn’t taking it any more.

Having sold cigars to attendees at the New York State Fair for several years, he was angry when the Fair’s management decided to refuse him a permit to sell cigars this year because of a decision – originated by current New York Governor Eliot Spitzer – to “promote a healthy lifestyle.”

So with the very considerable help of the New York C.L.A.S.H. (Citizens Lobbying Against Smoker Harrassment), Tarnowicz has filed suit against the State Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets, Daniel Hooker, and Daniel O’Hara, manager of the State Fair asking for relief in multiple layers:

• “A judgment declaring null and void Defendants’ policy of banning tobacco sales on the New York State Fairgrounds.

• “A permanent injunction enjoining Defendants from enforcing the April 4, 2007 determination denying Plaintiff a vendor’s license at the New York State Fair.

• A declaratory judgment that Plaintiff is entitled to a vendor’s license at the 2007 State Fair.”

Plus costs and other relief as the court may find appropriate.

Beyond the immediate issue of whether Tarnowicz, operating as Connecticut Valley Tobacconist (which sells high-quality – but not widely-known – brands such as Old Powder Keg [band shown above], Battleground and Mysterioso), can get a license to sell at the Fair is the complaint’s clear and compelling description of tobacco as today’s political whipping boy of choice:

“14. As stated in the April 4, 2007 letter, Defendant O’Hara’s purported reason for denying Plaintiff a vendor’s license at the 2007 New York State Fair was ‘an ongoing effort to encourage and promote a healthy New York.’

“15. The purpose of the ban on tobacco sales on the State Fairgrounds is not to protect people from health issues associated with tobacco smoke, rather the purpose is to ‘send a message’ that smoking is bad and should not be condoned.

“16. The sale and promotion of tobacco products is seen by anti-smoking advocated as the propagation of a pernicious idea, namely, that smoking should be accepted in American society, in addition to what they perceive as the protection of public health.

“17. Despite Defendants’ asserted desire to promote health and create a ‘healthy’ environment at the 2007 State Fair, Defendants have only banned the sale of tobacco products on the Fairgrounds, they have not banned the actual use or possession of tobacco products.

“18. This distinction is arbitrary and capricious, and demonstrates the absurdity of Defendants’ ban on the sale of tobacco, a legal product, to willing adults, making an informed choice, at the Fair. “19. Additionally, Defendants are allowing numerous other provably ‘unhealthy’ products to be sold at the 2007 State Fair.

“20. These other unhealthy products, which are permitted to be sold at the State Fair and on the Fairgrounds generally, include alcoholic beverages; foods with saturated fats and trans-fats, recently banned in New York City, and drinks laden with corn syrup and/or processed sugar.

“21. Defendants also allow the sale of firearms on the State Fairgrounds.”

The filing of the complaint on July 6 begins the court process. An answer to the complaint is due on or before August 3. Tarnowicz’s attorneys will additionally file for a preliminary injunction next week. The Fair itself will be held in Syracuse from August 23 to September 3. Stay tuned!

Tobacco to be taxed again . . . big time:
The billions paid by tobacco companies – and by extension, smokers – in the Master Settlement Agreement and side deals of all kinds to states has addicted government to tobacco taxes.

And now, there could be even more taxes on the way.

A Democratic proposal making its way through the U.S. Senate to fund the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) would increase Federal tobacco taxes to cover the $35 billion cost over the next five years. This program has cost about $40 billion since it was begun in 1997 and covers about 6.6 million children and 670,000 adults according to the Congressional Budget Office. Now the idea is to expand coverage to another two million children, many of which are part of families which are not living at or near the poverty line.

The current Federal tax on cigarettes is 39 cents per pack and on cigars is 20.719 percent of the wholesale price, but with a cap of $48.75 per thousand for large cigars, or just 4.9 per cigar. These taxes generated about $7.2 billion to the U.S. Treasury in 2005.

The proposal is to add 61 cents per pack to raise the total to $1 a pack and raise $35 billion over five years. Submitted by Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Oregon) as S.Amdt.510 to S.Con.Res.21, the language states:

“Among the policy changes that could be considered to achieve offsets to the cost of reauthorizing the State Children's Health Insurance Program and expanding coverage for children is an increase in the tobacco products user fee rate but only to the extent that such rate increase does not result in an increase of more than 61 cents per pack of cigarettes, with all revenue generated by such increase dedicated to such reauthorization and expansion.”

As currently stated, it’s obviously not clear whether cigars would be affected at all, or only slightly. Although the concept passed the Senate by a 59-40 vote in March, an actual bill has not yet been presented and while likely to pass through the Congress, it’s not likely that President George W. Bush – always averse to tax increases of any kind – would sign it. At least not yet.
~ Rich Perelman

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