Stogie News: Proposed Cigar Tax Hike Would Be Devastating
23 Jul 2007
Since news broke last week that Congress is proposing a bill to skyrocket taxes on cigars by 20,000 percent, the industry has been abuzz. Manufacturers, retailers, and aficionados alike are clamoring for an appeal to reason.
The bill would force law-abiding citizens like you and me to pay up to $10 in federal taxes to support what some call a noble cause: providing government-funded health care for poor children. But the anti-tobacco extremists behind the legislation fail to realize how the millions of people who are employed by the industry would be devastated. What about their children?
In a rare display of journalistic integrity, CBS 4 Miami reporter Gary Nelson has been covering how large and small tobacco dealers would be closing their doors if the bill passes. You can read some of his work and watch an excellent video exposé here.
In addition, Drew Newman of the J.C. Newman Cigar Company – makers of Arturo Fuente and Cuesta Rey – had a poignant letter in Saturday’s Washington Post. He notes that “unlike the cigarette industry, which is controlled by huge conglomerates, the cigar industry is dominated by small, family-owned companies that have been in the business for generations.”
Newman comes to the following conclusion: “Such an enormous, disproportionate tax increase would be grossly unfair and would cripple the premium cigar industry and all of the family-owned small businesses that are part of it.”
And it’s not like cigar makers like the Newmans are opposed to helping children in need. The company’s Cigar Family Charitable Foundation has been building schools, medical facilities, and job training centers in the Dominican Republic for years.
Tags: cigars
Patrick Ashby
Co-Founder & Editor in Chief
Patrick Semmens
Co-Founder & Publisher
George Edmonson
Tampa Bureau Chief
anyone who thinks this tax is about "the children" is a fool. It is about trying to ban smoking.
Patrick, thanks for pointing out the good work of the Cigar Family Charitable Foundation. They're really making a difference in the town of Caribe — all without the heavy hand of government. It just goes to show that people will make contributions for others that are less fortunate without the use of force.
I fought in WWII for freedom before Big Brother took over. Had I known our government would step into our private lives and dictate our personal habits( i.e. having a nice smoke) I would never have volunteered to defend this land.