Canadian cigarette maker paying up in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly announced a settlement on Monday with a Canadian-based cigarette manufacturer for allegedly failing to make escrow payments as required by the Tobacco Settlement Agreement Act.

Grand River Enterprises Six Nations Ltd., based in Ohsweken, Ontario, will pay more than $72,000 in civil penalties and $10,000 for costs related to the case. Grand River, which sells under the brand name Seneca in the United States, agreed to make the escrow payments required by the TSAA on a quarterly basis from now on.

The TSAA requires tobacco manufacturers to make payments into an escrow account for cigarette sales within the state. According to the agreement, Grand River allegedly failed to escrow more than $88,000 for the sale of more than five million cigarettes between 2001 and 2004.

Grand River has completed the certification process to become an approved manufacturer and will now be listed in the state's Tobacco Product Directory.

The settlement was negotiated by Deputy Attorney General Sharon Rogers from Kelly's Tobacco Enforcement Section.

Grand River reached a settlement in the state of Ohio earlier this month resolving a similar allegation of failing to establish an escrow account for the sale of its cigarettes as required by law. The company paid penalties and post-judgment interest of $1,052,000 to the state's General Revenue Fund and paid attorneys fees and costs of $82,000 to Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine's office as part of the settlement.

Unstamped cigarettes land New York man in prison

A New York man caught on a Lebanon County interstate highway with thousands of cigarette packs without tax stamps was sentenced to state prison last week.
Judge Charles T. Jones Jr. sentenced Clyde Banks Jr., 41, Bronx., N.Y., to state prison for 14 months to five years and ordered him to pay a $100 fine and restitution of $13,440 for lost tax revenue.

State police stopped the van that Banks was driving on April 14 on I-78 at mile marker 7.5 in Bethel Township. Police said they found 840 cartons of cigarettes without tax stamps, according to court records.

Bust yields 6 tons of marijuana, $93,000 in cash

Federal authorities say a drug bust in West Michigan netted more than 6 tons of marijuana along with about $93,000 in cash.

The Grand Rapids Press reports the marijuana was found Friday at a warehouse in Grand Rapids-area community of Wyoming following a tip. Court documents shows that the money includes about $85,000 from the home of one of six people charged in the case.

Each is charged with marijuana conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute the drug. Prosecutors are seeking forfeiture of the cash.

Authorities say the marijuana was found in nearly 500 bales.

World Tour Event at Neptune Cigar Superstore

On Thursday November 3rd, 2011 from 5-9 PM, Neptune Cigar Superstore will be hosting one of the last stops of the Studio Tobac 2011 World Tour, and the only event of this kind in Miami, Florida. The tour, which began February 2011 across the nation, will end in November 2011 with the giveaway of a one of a kind Cain Daytona Corvette valued at $70,000!
Studio Tobac is an enterprise of Miami’s Oliva Cigar Company reuniting their most innovative minds to conceive new cigar concepts such as the very successful NUB, a cigar which introduced a complete new format in premium handmade cigars to the industry, and CAIN, the only STRAIGHT LIGERO cigar in the world. Studio Ambassador Bryan Scholle will bring to Neptune Cigar’s Superstore the Special Edition 2011 Touring Corvette Convertible. Scholle will also be bringing the Studio’s latest projects with him.
The STUDIO TOBAC Limited Edition Sampler will be available for Free to any customer who purchases a box of STUDIO TOBAC products (Nub, Cain...) at the event. This unique and rare sampler of unreleased cigars will not be available for sale online, and will not be sold separately.
Each sampler will contain one of each of the following cigars.
1. Cain F Lancero – Cain F blend in a Lancero format, presented in an aluminum tube.
2. Cain FF Torpedo – 6x54 Torpedo; a stronger blend of the Cain F.
3. Cain Daytona Short Robusto – Daytona blend in a sampler exclusive 4.5x50 short Robusto size.
4. Nub Habano Perfecto – the first Nub Perfecto ever created. 4.5x60.
5. Nub San Andreas Maduro – 4x64. A new size and a wrapper never before used on Nubs.
6. "ST/DS-100," an unnamed, full bodied, all Maduro prototype cigar.
There will also be a drawing at the event for a custom made scrimshaw Studio Tobac cutter among other things. These are very unique cutters that will not be for sale anywhere. Bryan Scholle will roll cigars at the event and talk about the new Cain Daytona cigar.

Boise smoking ban proposal proving to be a heated issue

It was standing room only Tuesday night inside Boise City Hall where dozens of residents gathered to sound off on the City of Trees proposed smoke-free air ordinances.

Boise City Council is considering two smoke-free ordinaces. The first would ban smoking in all Boise bars, private clubs and within 20 feet of city-owned buildings. The second proposal would ban smoking in public parks including within 20 feet of the Boise Greenbelt. There would be designated smoking areas at both Julia Davis and Ann Morrison parks.

City Council heard more than three hours of public testimony, Tuesday night. Many residents believe a smoking ban would promote a healthier city by minimizing secondhand smoke. "Everyone deserves the right to breathe clean air, period," Adrian Casper said.

Other Boiseians argue a smoking ban would cause storefronts to close and the local economy to suffer. "I don't think the City should have the right to put people out of business and that's what they're doing," Mona Lindeen said.

City leaders say if the ordinaces pass, there will be a waiting period before the legislation goes into effect to ensure bar owners the necessary time to educate their customers. If City Council approves the smoke-free proposals, the legislation will be enforced beginning in January 2012.

Smoking out villains of Wall Street

As I begin this column, on Oct. 10, the “Occupy Wall Street” movement has spread to dozens of American cities. By the time this sees print, on Oct. 20, the wave of discontent may have dissipated. Or it could grow into something much larger.

It’s good to see citizens take part in a peaceful uproar. It means that apathy and despair have not yet won the day. It’s also rewarding to see slogans and placards lofted by the protesters rather than smoke from gunfire and explosions. Violence can bring change, but usually the chief victims are the poor and powerless.

Right now the OWS people have few, if any, leaders. I haven’t seen evidence of precise goals. This augurs poorly for the assemblage. Whether it’s cleaning out the garage or forging a different government, knowing exactly what you’re aiming for is important. Otherwise things tend to fall apart, with little achieved.

And that’s what happens to most street protests: with time, they fade away. The Establishment – whether it’s Wall Street, Congress, the Pentagon or the White House – knows this. Patience tends to prevail over passion.

I hope this won’t happen with OWS. The peaceful protesters who have gathered in the downtowns of American cities are merely harbingers – indicators that (along with other problems) something is radically wrong with how our country’s financial institutions operate. If all the protesters were asked, “Exactly what are you angry about?” I’d bet that 60 percent would reply, “I’m mad because the crooks on Wall Street are still at large. They should be identified, tried and punished.”

Cape May Council Votes to Ban Smoking

Cape May continues to move forward with plans to ban smoking on its beaches, oceanfront Promenade and public parks.

On Tuesday, an ordinance banning smoking in these areas was introduced with a 5-0 vote. The AC Press reports that all five members of the Cape May City council are nonsmokers.

While Deputy Mayor Jack Wichterman first proposed the idea earlier this year, his plan only included banning smoking from beaches. The ordinance now includes the Promenade, Rotary Park, Sunset Pavilion, Kiwanis Park, Wise-Anderson Park, Harborview Park and the city’s dog park, according to the AC Press.

The ordinance sets a minimum fine of $100 for violations. The Press reports that the maximum fine, which could follow repeat offenses, is as much as $1250 along with community service or prison terms not exceeding 90 days.

The proposed ordinance says that a nonsmoker’s right to breath smoke-free air is a priority over a person’s desire to smoke. It also cites studies that say second-hand smoke outdoors poses hazards.

A public hearing and final vote on the ordinance will be held at 7 p.m. on Monday, November 14.

Quit Smoking, Spurn Alcohol to Improve Sleep Quality, Study Says

Quitting cigarettes and spurning alcohol before bed may help remedy poor sleep quality, according to a study in Japan.

Pack-a-day smokers get 10 minutes less sleep a night than non-smokers, researchers at Kyoto’s Doshisha University found. The study of adult men also found that those who consumed at least 60 grams of alcohol a day, or the equivalent of 1.5 liters of beer, were likely to wake 1.5 times more during the night than those who limited intake to less than 20 grams.

The research suggests simple lifestyle changes could yield longer, more restful sleep, said Atsuko Nakazawa, head of Doshisha University’s health center. The stimulating effects of nicotine, tobacco’s addictive component, may delay sleep and cause nightmares and problems waking, according to the U.S. National Sleep Foundation.

“Smokers just have to quit smoking” to improve sleep, said Nakazawa, who led the study, which was presented at a scientific meeting Kyoto today. “It’s easier than changing diet, for example.”

A quarter of Japanese adults smoked in 2009, according to Japan Tobacco Inc., the world’s third-biggest publicly traded cigarette-maker. The average price of a pack of 20 cigarettes in Japan is 400 yen ($5.20), compared with $10.80 in New York.

Alcohol is a poor sleep aid, according to the sleep foundation in Arlington, Virginia. The chemical disrupts one’s ability to enter the deeper, more restful stages of sleep, it says.

The Doshisha University study involved a survey of 3,256 males ages 30 to 59 years, who slept an average of 6.9 hours in 2007. The data was presented at the Sixth World Congress of the World Sleep Federation, which runs Oct. 16 to 20.

Philip Morris International Inc. (PM): Today's Featured Tobacco Winner

The tobacco industry closed the day down 0.3%. Alliance One International Inc (AOI) were all winners today within the tobacco industry with Philip Morris International Inc (PM) being today's featured tobacco winner. Philip Morris International Inc rose $1.01 (1.6%) to $66.31 on average volume. Throughout the day, 7.9 million shares of Philip Morris International Inc exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 9.4 million shares.

Philip Morris International Inc., through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells cigarettes and other tobacco products. Philip Morris International Inc has a market cap of $116 billion and is part of the consumer goods sector. The company has a P/E ratio of 15.1, equal to the average tobacco industry P/E ratio and below the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. Shares are up 11.6% year to date as of the close of trading on Tuesday.

TheStreet Ratings rates Philip Morris International as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, notable return on equity, expanding profit margins, solid stock price performance and impressive record of earnings per share growth. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had generally poor debt management on most measures that we evaluated.

Health Coalition Lobbies for Tobacco Tax Increase

The Maryland Citizens' Health Initiative has launched a campaign to raise taxes on all tobacco products in Maryland. Cigarette prices would increase by $1 per pack, and other tobacco taxes would increase at a corresponding rate.

More than 150 faith, community and health organizations have already endorsed the proposed tax, including the AARP, the NAACP of Maryland and the American Cancer Society.

The tobacco tax revenue would fund various state health-related programs, including tobacco control programs and improved healthcare access for Maryland families.

"Not only is this good policy, it's good politics," said Vincent DeMarco, president of the Maryland Citizens' Health Initiative. "We all will benefit."

Tobacco lobbyist Bruce Bereano disagrees, and said the tax hike on tobacco is discriminatory and unwarranted.

"Smoking is legal and lawful among adults in Maryland. If that's going to continue and be left as a personal decision among adults, then let's stop hassling and intimidating and jerking around adult smokers," Bereano said. "Enough is enough."

Maryland last raised taxes on non-cigarette tobacco in 1999. Cigarette taxes have been raised several times since then, most recently by $1 in January 2008.

The tobacco tax campaign comes only a few months after the Health Initiative successfully lobbied to raise the tax on alcohol in April.

DeMarco said that raising the cost of tobacco saves both lives and money. Smoking rates in Maryland declined by 32.6 percent between 1998 and 2009, which was double the national average. DeMarco said the decrease in smoking saved more than 70,000 lives and hundreds of millions of dollars in health care costs.

The current tax increase would not be the end of the campaign. Tobacco tax advocates would like Maryland to become a smoke-free state.

Bereano contends that raising the tobacco tax actually costs the state money because smokers leave the state to buy tobacco.

"It's not going to stop smoking in Maryland ... [The smokers] are just going to be driven further from the state of Maryland to buy their smokes, and they'll buy their bread and butter and other things there. Maryland will lose revenue, it makes no sense fiscally," Bereano said.

Bereano said the people who may get hit hardest by the tax are people in cities who don't have personal transportation and cannot go elsewhere to buy tobacco.

DeMarco said the Health Initiative will continue to advocate for the tobacco tax if the legislature does not pass the increase in next year's session.

"If the legislature doesn't pass it, we are ready to make this a top issue in the 2014 election," DeMarco said.

36 brands of imitation cigarettes confiscated

The Health Department scored the biggest success in its operation against illegal cigarettes with the confiscation of 36 brands of imitation cigarettes here yesterday.

The department’s Inspectorate and Enforcement Unit headed by assistant director (Legal Affairs & Prosecution) Samuil-Ashton Satu in the one-day operation also found six outlets selling the illegal fags far below the minimal price and without pictorial health warnings as stipulated under the Control of Tobacco Products Regulations 2004.

These illicit fags are sold as low as RM1.80 to RM3.20 per packet, depending on its brand. This is very much below the minimal price of RM7 per packet approved by Ministry of Health, Malaysia.

“It’s the biggest ever success on illicit cigarettes. All this while we conduct our operation for other offences too but we don’t find much illicit cigarettes. From reliable sources, cigarettes are sold below the minimal price without pictorial health warnings at a lot of retail shops and even public toilets,’ he told The Borneo Post yesterday.

He said the one-day operation on illicit fags in Miri City in response to the Oct 9, 2011 article in thesundaypost headlined ‘Losses to illicit cigarettes far outweigh any potential monetary gains’. One of the questions posted was ‘Are health authorities and other relevant agencies doing their part in checking and penalising premises that sell these types of cigarettes?’

Samuil said his eight-member team of officers from Miri Divisional Health Office made surprise visits to various locations around the city such as the Bus Terminal, E-mart Permyjaya, Boulevard Commercial Centre, Krokop Market, Pujut Corner and Miri Market.

The sellers were given notice under Section 32B of the Food Act 1983 to appear in the magistrate’s court, Miri. They could opt to be compounded, especially for minimally-priced cigarettes.

But the offence of selling cigarettes without pictorial health warnings was not compoundable and any offender convicted could be fined not exceeding RM10,000, jailed two years or both.

Samuil reminded buyers that there was a great possibility that the content of tar and nicotine in illicit cigarettes far exceeded the limit approved by the Ministry of Health, Malaysia.

Furthermore, illicit fags might contain more chemicals poisonous to health, and have more negative effects on health including cancer.

Similar operations on an ad hoc basis would be carried out throughout the state.

New Mexico woman sought marijuana via Craigslist

A New Mexico woman was arrested this week after she sought out marijuana on Craigslist in a notice that said she was "new in town" and "looking for Mary Jane," police said on Wednesday.

Anamicka Dave, 29, of Roswell was released from the Chavez County jail on a $5,000 bond, and faces one felony count of criminal solicitation of marijuana, authorities said.

Roswell police spokesman Travis Holley said Dave was arrested by undercover officers on Monday evening in the parking lot of a local business after a narcotics officer surfing the Web on his own time spotted her posting.

Holley said the officer confirmed through an exchange of e-mails that it was marijuana she was looking to buy, and arranged a meeting place to complete the transaction.

"He was shocked when he stumbled upon (Dave's posting)," Holley said. "He thought it might have been a sting operation by another law enforcement agency."

After ensuring it was not, the officer began his communication with Dave and the sale was arranged, Holley said. The undercover buy was necessary for an arrest because seeking marijuana on the Internet was not a crime, he added.

"They might just be joking around," he said.

The person "must show intent to carry out that plan," Holley said. The officer "responded to the ad, and she took the bait."

Medical marijuana must face stricter regulations

When 55.6 percent of voters approved the California Compassionate Use Act in 1996, it was heralded by supporters as a humane act to bring relief to people in pain by the tightly controlled marijuana prescriptions.

In the 15 years since, debate has continued to simmer. Most California cities have banned medical marijuana collectives. In Riverside County, Palm Springs is the only city that allows them, largely because of the concentration of AIDS patients. Up to three licensed collectives are allowed here.

The trouble in Palm Springs is that unlicensed dispensaries continue to exist — so much so that Stacy Hochanadel was forced to close CannaHelp, one of the three legal collectives, because he couldn't pay his rent and his electric bill.

This tells us either controls are too loose or enforcement is too lax. Palm Springs has shut down six unlicensed dispensaries. All desert cities and the county should remain diligent.

However, the court system is sending mixed signals. A state appellate court struck down Long Beach's law, which allows a limited number of collectives like Palm Springs, because it conflicts with federal law.

A day before that ruling, a Riverside County Superior Court ruled against Rancho Mirage's ban on medical marijuana collectives because it conflicts with California's 1996 initiative.

Meanwhile, the federal Department of Justice launched a crackdown on dozens of medical marijuana dispensaries, claiming they are using the cover of the Compassionate Use Act to act as storefront drug dealers.

This is a major turnaround for the Obama administration, which earlier said it wouldn't aggressively raid medical marijuana operations.

“Our federal agents have better things to do, like catching criminals and preventing terrorism,” the president said early in his term.

In a perfect world, medical marijuana would be treated like any other doctor-prescribed medicine — such as Vicodin or OxyContin — dispensed by pharmacists at CVS, Sav-On, Rite Aid, Walgreens and so on. But pharmacists operate under the Federal Drug Administration and as long as the federal government considers marijuana illegal, that can't happen.

Medical marijuana laws have been enacted in 16 states and the District of Columbia. Another six states are considering such laws.

It's time for Congress to consider a nationwide medical marijuana initiative. It wouldn't be unprecedented. From 1978 to 1992, the federal government ran a medical marijuana program called the IND Compassionate Access Program. Three patients grandfathered into the program still get treatment via the federal government.

The Desert Sun believes providing relief for people in pain is the right thing to do, but it shouldn't be just a way to make it easy for scofflaws to get high and for growers to pocket easy profits. States should have the right to enact these laws, but cities should have the right to ban collectives.

The programs must be tightly controlled and illegal dispensaries must be thwarted.

Revenue officials unplug cigarette-rolling machines

Holy Smokes doesn't make cigarettes, co-owner Josh Winrich said. His customers do. "We are in the rental business," Winrich said of his roll-your-own cigarette machines.
"The customer buys the tobacco. They rent the machine. The customer does all the work."
Not so, according to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue, which informed machine owners like Winrich that they need manufacturing and distribution permits and other approvals for selling cigarettes.
The state considers roll-your-own stores as cigarette manufacturers and distributors under a long-standing state law.
State agents arrived last week at Holy Smokes, 1103 Rose St., and unplugged the machines.
Winrich has 30 days to remove the machines from the store, which he and co-owner Craig Squires opened in April.
For smokers, the advantage of the roll-your-own cigarette machines come down to cost, Winrich said. Customers pay $29.95 for tobacco, tubes, paper and filters they feed into machines that churn out about 200 cigarettes in 10 minutes.
"They're either going to continue to roll their own at home or go back over to Minnesota and buy cheaper cigarettes," Winrich said. "People are not going to stop smoking because of this."
Anti-smoking advocates disagree, saying that when the cost of smoking increases, it provides an incentive for people to quit.
"Cheap cigarettes are dangerous to the health of our state," said Judi Zabel, La Crosse County Health educator and coordinator. "It makes it easier for young people to start smoking and harder for adults to quit."
Tobacco use costs Wisconsin $2.8 billion in health care costs each year, Zabel said, $500 million alone in taxpayer-funded Medicare.
"This is an opportunity to call the Quit Line, to seek help," Zabel said. "The cost is one good reason not to smoke."
The state estimates there are 50 to 100 roll-your-own machines in Wisconsin. Retailers could face fines, penalties, permit revocation, imprisonment, and/or seizure of the tobacco and other personal property used in this activity.
Stephanie Marquis, a spokeswoman for the Department of Revenue, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the agency was simply enforcing laws that 8,000 traditional cigarette retailers follow.
"There are thousands of other businesses around the state who are providing jobs and following the law," Marquis said. "What this is about is making sure these (roll-your-own) businesses follow the law and fairly compete with other retailers."
Each of the three machines Winrich owns cost $32,500. He worries that it would be too difficult or costly to get any necessary permits to keep his machines operable.
He said lawyers are reviewing the law and a lawsuit could be filed by roll-your-own retailers.
In September, Winrich signed a year lease to open a second location on Mormon Coulee Road. He planned to open it last week but isn't sure what will happen now.
"Our business plan doesn't make sense without those machines," Winrich said.

Cigarette dealer charged, feds say he conspired to avoid $2 million in KY tobacco taxes

A tobacco distributor closely watched by federal agents for a decade has been charged in Kentucky with using phony invoices to avoid paying taxes on millions of dollars’ worth of cigarettes that he sold in several states.

As far back as 2002, prosecutors in Texas sought to secretly listen to cell phone conversations involving 41-year-old Pedro “Peter” Bello of Miami, Fla. He was linked to several large-scale investigations and named in a civil lawsuit brought by the city of New York over untaxed cigarettes, but never charged until now.
Bello was arrested Tuesday on a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Authorities say he bought massive amounts of cigarettes in Kentucky but used invoices written by a company he owned in Missouri to avoid paying sales taxes. He then sold the cigarettes around the country while pocketing bigger profits by avoiding the Kentucky tax.

The indictment against him says that his Louisville-based company GT Northeast avoided paying $2 million in taxes on $12 million worth of cigarettes it sold. But details of previous investigations indicate the scope of his operations were much larger.

A woman answering the phone at a number in Miami listed for Bello said he no longer lived at that house. The woman declined to give her name before hanging up. Bello is scheduled for arraignment Oct. 18 at 9:30 a.m. in Louisville.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Miami, which took custody of Bello, did not immediately return a call Wednesday morning.

The federal government has cracked down in recent years on contraband cigarettes — smokes sold by people and businesses through illegitimate channels to avoid paying taxes. The Department of Justice estimates that federal, state and local governments lose out on $5 billion annually in tax revenue from the cigarette schemes.

Bello’s name has surfaced in several investigations at the heart of the ATF’s crackdown. Federal court records from Kentucky, New York and Texas depict Bello as a man involved in moving millions of cigarettes around the country without paying taxes to various states.

Bello was a subject of the Texas investigation in 2002 in which federal prosecutors sought to secretly listen in on the cell phones of dozens of people suspected of trafficking in contraband cigarettes. He avoided indictment, but 15 others were charged, with 13 people pleading guilty or being convicted. Prison sentences ranged from a year to six years behind bars.