Comments on: Stogie News: Legislative Update, Rocky Patel on Cigar Taxes

By: Don

Don — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 17:56:00 +0000

I recall reading a European Commission document that distinguished between fine-cut tobacco and pipe tobacco. They were working out a definition that would be adapted in order to better differentiate between pipe and fine-cut tobacco and avoid inappropriate taxation.

I believe the rationale was that fine-cut tobacco could not be distinguished from cigarette tobacco and would be used in the same way – inhaled into the lungs – which began the whole health issue in the early 1900s when cigarettes were first mass produced, while pipe tobacco had already been popular for many centuries without these ill effects.

I’m sorry now that I didn’t keep a copy of these documents, but it all seemed so obvious at the time that I didn’t bother.

But I do remember that they worked out a distinction that did treat fine-cut tobacco in the same way as cigarette tobacco as contrasted to pipe tobacco. I was glad to see that pipe tobacco was not being lumped together because it all came under the same word “tobacco”, hence discrimination by association.

Cigars, of course, also didn’t fit the definition of “fine-cut” tobacco.

By: Whitey

Whitey — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 14:42:28 +0000

This is the sort of source-driven, behind-the-scenes cigar reporting that I’ve only come to expect from the Stogie Guys. Well done. And given the information he already has, I’m really looking forward to reading that Rocky interview in full…

By: George E.

George E. — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 10:31:52 +0000

If you're interested in looking at the federal taxes on alcohol and tobacco in all their forms, take a look at http://ttb.gov/tax_audit/atftaxes.shtml One of the most interesting aspects is that there's a provision in the beer tax that provides for significantly lower rates for smaller "craft" brewers. I've never heard this possibility raised for cigars, though it would seem to me to be a great solution to the problem Rocky points out.

By: Cigar Inspector

Cigar Inspector — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 08:18:25 +0000

Thanks for this piece of information. Interesting, as always.

By: Robert

Robert — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 07:36:52 +0000

That RYO tax makes me wonder if the cigarette manufacturers negotiated that as part of the deal in order to run the RYO companies out of business. That tax makes no sense without there being some ulterior motive.

I'll also say that, since they threw us under the bus, it would be nice to know which companies pushed for the higher taxes on handmade cigars. I'd like to slow my purchases of their products. Any others besides Altadis?