Seattle's parks superintendent has relaxed a ban on smoking in city parks just a day after he announced it would take effect April 1.
The revised rule that Superintendent Timothy Gallagher announced late Thursday prohibits "smoking, chewing or other tobacco use" within 25 feet of other park patrons.
On Wednesday, Gallagher announced a ban on tobacco use anywhere in city parks as a health measure to protect people from secondhand smoke.
He backtracked in a statement Thursday, saying he's decided that a gradual approach to a smoking ban is reasonable, "based on the input from the public" that followed his initial decision.
A 25-foot rule is what the Board of Park Commissioners had recommended.
понедельник, 22 февраля 2010 г.
вторник, 16 февраля 2010 г.
4m cigarettes siezed in Cork
Customs officers have seized 4.2 million cigarettes in the largest haul of counterfeit tobacco ever landed in the Port of Cork. It is estimated the haul would have cost Revenue over €1 million in lost taxes.
The cigarettes, which were in John Player Blue boxes, were found among a cargo of swimwear manufactured in China which arrived at Tivoli docks in a container last Friday evening. The counterfeit cigarettes were uncovered in a routine operation by customs officers at the docks.
It is understood the cigarettes would have been sold on the market in this country for in the region of €5 a packet even though they would have cost just cents to produce.
This is the second major seizure of counterfeit cigarettes in Cork in recent weeks. On January 28th gardai seized 755,000 counterfeit cigarettes and more than 500kg of tobacco, worth an estimated €500,000.
The intelligence-led operation, involving gardaí and Customs officers, on a private residence at Carrignavar, Co Cork, and searches of a garage and a van by revenue officers.
Follow-up searches of premises on the north side of Cork city and in east Cork led to further seizures.
The cigarettes, which were in John Player Blue boxes, were found among a cargo of swimwear manufactured in China which arrived at Tivoli docks in a container last Friday evening. The counterfeit cigarettes were uncovered in a routine operation by customs officers at the docks.
It is understood the cigarettes would have been sold on the market in this country for in the region of €5 a packet even though they would have cost just cents to produce.
This is the second major seizure of counterfeit cigarettes in Cork in recent weeks. On January 28th gardai seized 755,000 counterfeit cigarettes and more than 500kg of tobacco, worth an estimated €500,000.
The intelligence-led operation, involving gardaí and Customs officers, on a private residence at Carrignavar, Co Cork, and searches of a garage and a van by revenue officers.
Follow-up searches of premises on the north side of Cork city and in east Cork led to further seizures.
понедельник, 8 февраля 2010 г.
State high court denies tobacco company appeals
The state Supreme Court on Wednesday denied tobacco companies' appeals of a San Francisco jury's award of $2.85 million in damages to the family of a woman who died of lung cancer after smoking cigarettes for 26 years.Leslie Whiteley of Ojai (Ventura County) sued Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds before her death in 2000 at age 40.
She testified that she started smoking at 13, using her lunch money to buy cigarettes, and paid little attention to the warning labels because tobacco companies promoted the benefits of smoking and the government allowed the sales. She smoked two packs a day until she was diagnosed with cancer in 1998.
jury awarded Whiteley and her husband $1.7 million in compensation and $20 million in punitive damages four months before she died. It was the nation's first verdict in favor of a smoker who took up the habit after 1965, when the government first required warnings on cigarette packages.
A state appeals court granted the companies a new trial in 2004, citing a law that immunized them from damages for harm caused by their products between 1988 and 1998. A second jury awarded Whiteley's family $2.85 million in 2007.
The companies appealed, arguing that they weren't responsible for statements by industry groups like the Tobacco Institute in the 1970s and 1980s that scientific research was still inconclusive about the health risks of smoking.
A state appeals court upheld the verdict in October, saying Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds were among a small group of companies that funded and bankrolled the industry groups and influenced their research. The companies never contradicted the trade groups' "false or misleading statements" and engaged in their own "campaign of deception" during the same period to keep smokers addicted, the court said.
The state's high court unanimously denied review of the companies' appeal Wednesday.
четверг, 4 февраля 2010 г.
Cigarette heist spans from New Jersey to Miami
The search for millions of dollars of cigarettes stolen from an East Peoria warehouse on Sunday has reached as far as the New York and Miami areas, authorities said Wednesday.
Detective Kevin Beckman of the East Peoria Police Department said stolen semi trucks and trailers that have been recovered include one trailer found abandoned Tuesday on the New Jersey Turnpike near Newark, N.J.
About 12:30 a.m. Sunday, East Peoria police responded to a break-in at Federal Warehouse Co., 200 National Road along Illinois Route 116.
There, they found four forklifts still running with their lights on, large boxes of cigarettes knocked to the floor and a bay door left open. On the roof were cutting tools, a drill, two pairs of gloves and a ladder.
Police believe five to 10 burglars gained entry by cutting a hole in the roof. Because snow and ice were on the roof, water damage was sustained in corporate offices, the operations center and an information technology area, said Jeff Bogdan, company co-owner and vice president of sales and marketing.
Beckman estimated the break-in took place between 2 and 9 a.m. Sunday. The alarm system had been shut off.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the FBI are involved in the investigation, along with Illinois State Police.
Without specifically classifying the suspects as members of organized crime, Beckman said federal agencies are aware of "organized groups" that specialize in stealing cigarettes, often by circumventing security systems and using locally stolen semis. Beckman said those involved in the Federal heist are believed to be from Miami.
"These are organized crews that law enforcement, especially in Florida and on the eastern seaboard, are familiar with," Beckman said. "There are several crews that cargo-theft task forces are investigating."
The cigarettes had not yet been tagged with tax stamps, which typically occurs after they have reached the states in which they will be sold. The cigarettes probably will be sold on the black market, Beckman said.
The trailer found in New Jersey was stolen from G&D Transportation in Morton. Three other stolen G&D trailers were found on the Federal property. One Federal trailer and three additional G&D trailers remain missing, Beckman said.
Two semis stolen from Unisource in Morton were recovered at the scene, and one truck from Mathis-Kelly in Morton was found on a dirt road that runs underneath Interstate 74.
Two trucks stolen from DeHater in East Peoria and one Unisource truck remain missing, Beckman said.
Citing confidentiality agreements with customers who store goods with Federal, Bogdan declined to specify the brand of cigarettes stolen, the quantity or the resale value.
Because one trailer was found in New Jersey and four others remain unaccounted for, police deduced that five loads of cigarettes were taken. That amount of cigarettes is believed to be worth several million dollars.
"Items of evidentiary nature, which will be helpful in the investigation, were recovered," Beckman said of the recovered trucks and trailers.
Bogdan said the company is thankful no employees were present during the break-in. He said the cigarettes were insured and there was enough supply to fill all delivery orders.
Detective Kevin Beckman of the East Peoria Police Department said stolen semi trucks and trailers that have been recovered include one trailer found abandoned Tuesday on the New Jersey Turnpike near Newark, N.J.
About 12:30 a.m. Sunday, East Peoria police responded to a break-in at Federal Warehouse Co., 200 National Road along Illinois Route 116.
There, they found four forklifts still running with their lights on, large boxes of cigarettes knocked to the floor and a bay door left open. On the roof were cutting tools, a drill, two pairs of gloves and a ladder.
Police believe five to 10 burglars gained entry by cutting a hole in the roof. Because snow and ice were on the roof, water damage was sustained in corporate offices, the operations center and an information technology area, said Jeff Bogdan, company co-owner and vice president of sales and marketing.
Beckman estimated the break-in took place between 2 and 9 a.m. Sunday. The alarm system had been shut off.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the FBI are involved in the investigation, along with Illinois State Police.
Without specifically classifying the suspects as members of organized crime, Beckman said federal agencies are aware of "organized groups" that specialize in stealing cigarettes, often by circumventing security systems and using locally stolen semis. Beckman said those involved in the Federal heist are believed to be from Miami.
"These are organized crews that law enforcement, especially in Florida and on the eastern seaboard, are familiar with," Beckman said. "There are several crews that cargo-theft task forces are investigating."
The cigarettes had not yet been tagged with tax stamps, which typically occurs after they have reached the states in which they will be sold. The cigarettes probably will be sold on the black market, Beckman said.
The trailer found in New Jersey was stolen from G&D Transportation in Morton. Three other stolen G&D trailers were found on the Federal property. One Federal trailer and three additional G&D trailers remain missing, Beckman said.
Two semis stolen from Unisource in Morton were recovered at the scene, and one truck from Mathis-Kelly in Morton was found on a dirt road that runs underneath Interstate 74.
Two trucks stolen from DeHater in East Peoria and one Unisource truck remain missing, Beckman said.
Citing confidentiality agreements with customers who store goods with Federal, Bogdan declined to specify the brand of cigarettes stolen, the quantity or the resale value.
Because one trailer was found in New Jersey and four others remain unaccounted for, police deduced that five loads of cigarettes were taken. That amount of cigarettes is believed to be worth several million dollars.
"Items of evidentiary nature, which will be helpful in the investigation, were recovered," Beckman said of the recovered trucks and trailers.
Bogdan said the company is thankful no employees were present during the break-in. He said the cigarettes were insured and there was enough supply to fill all delivery orders.
понедельник, 1 февраля 2010 г.
New Cigarette, Soda Tax Proposed in NY Budget
Gov. David Paterson’s budget plan includes an extra $1 billion in tax and fee increases, some of which would have you paying more at your local convenience store.
Paterson plans to use most of the billion dollars in tax hikes to offset health care costs. His budget proposal raises the cigarette tax by $1 to $3.75 a pack. He says it would generate nearly $220 million for the state.
The president of the New York State Association of Convenience Stores, Jim Calvin, says increasing the cigarette tax only drives consumers to places where they don't have to pay it.
“We've reached the point now where half the cigarettes consumed by New Yorkers are purchased without the collection on New York State tax and increasing the tax rate another buck is only going to fuel that cigarette tax evasion epidemic,” said Calvin.
Calvin says cigarette tax evasion has cost New York State about $1 billion a year.
Paterson plans to enforce cigarette tax collection on Indian sales to non-Indians in order to recoup that money.
The governor also wants to tackle the obesity epidemic by putting an excise tax of about one cent per ounce on sugary drinks.
Calvin says tax hikes like these are causing a steep decline in sales for convenience stores.
“We don’t understand why our customers who drink those beverages in moderation should have to be penalized, because some of their neighbors drink them to excess,” said Calvin.
If the legislature approves the governor’s plan, the new taxes would go into effect at the beginning of June.
Paterson plans to use most of the billion dollars in tax hikes to offset health care costs. His budget proposal raises the cigarette tax by $1 to $3.75 a pack. He says it would generate nearly $220 million for the state.
The president of the New York State Association of Convenience Stores, Jim Calvin, says increasing the cigarette tax only drives consumers to places where they don't have to pay it.
“We've reached the point now where half the cigarettes consumed by New Yorkers are purchased without the collection on New York State tax and increasing the tax rate another buck is only going to fuel that cigarette tax evasion epidemic,” said Calvin.
Calvin says cigarette tax evasion has cost New York State about $1 billion a year.
Paterson plans to enforce cigarette tax collection on Indian sales to non-Indians in order to recoup that money.
The governor also wants to tackle the obesity epidemic by putting an excise tax of about one cent per ounce on sugary drinks.
Calvin says tax hikes like these are causing a steep decline in sales for convenience stores.
“We don’t understand why our customers who drink those beverages in moderation should have to be penalized, because some of their neighbors drink them to excess,” said Calvin.
If the legislature approves the governor’s plan, the new taxes would go into effect at the beginning of June.
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