Louisiana: House Bill 473, which raises the minimum age for the sale of tobacco, alternative nicotine products, or vapor products to the age of 21, moved to the Governor on June 11, 2021.
Maine: LD1550 / H.P. 1155, which prohibits the sale and distribution of all flavored tobacco products and ENDS (includes menthol products), reported out of the Joint Committee on Health and Human Services with divided reports on June 14, 2021. LD1693 / H.P.1258, which bans the sale of all flavored tobacco products (e. g. cigarettes, cigars, snuff, chew, END), increases the cigarette tax to $4.00 per pack and eliminates the cigarette stamping discount to distributors, was approved for carryover on June 3, 2021. LD1423 / H.P. 1039, which increases the cigarette tax from $2.00 per pack to $4.00 per 20 pack and by law, increases the tax on other tobacco products by the same percentage change as the increase in the tax on cigarettes, was voted down in the House by a vote of 67-73 on June 15. The bill was recommitted to the Joint Committee on Taxation on June 17, 2021 (carried over to any special or regular session).
North Carolina: House Bill 334 (as substituted in the Senate), which contains language to modify the excise tax on cigars to tax online sales the same as in-person sales (12.8 percent of the cost price with a cap of $0.30 per cigar), was received in the House for concurrence on June 15, 2021.
Oregon: House Bill 2261, which prohibits remote sales of vapor products, will become effective January 1, 2022 (correction from previous report.) Senate Bill 587, which requires tobacco and vapor retailers to obtain a license from the Department of Revenue and prohibits local authorities from enacting licensing requirements, but grandfathers local licensing requirements in effect on January 1, 2021, passed the Joint Committee on Ways and Means on June 16, 2021.
Texas: Senate Bill 248, which requires anyone selling electronic cigarettes to consumer to obtain a license from the Comptroller, is still awaiting the Governor’s signature as of June 18, 2021. If approved, the law would go into effect on September 1, 2021. A provision imposing a tax on alternative nicotine products at the rate of $1.22 per ounce and a proportionate rate on all fractional parts of an ounce was removed from the final version of the bill.
For all the latest news from the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO), visit natocentral.org.
