Sunday, June 28 2009
Following a long, drawn-out budget debate, the State Assembly finally has put forward a budget including tobacco tax increases. However, the state's cigar tax
cap will hold at its current rate of 50 cents per cigar. The state's OTP excise tax rate will increase from 50% to 71%.
Other tobacco tax increases include an increase in the cigarette tax by 75 cents, to $2.52 per pack, and moist snuff reverts to an ad valorem tax, from the current $1.31 per ounce flat tax to 100%.
IMPORTANT NOTE: a floor stocks tax applies only to cigarettes.
The governor is expected to approve the budget including these tax increases--the new rates go into effect September 1st.
IPCPR Retailers (working together as the Cigar Store Alliance of Wisconsin (C-SAW) and the Cigar Association of America (CAA) worked together to reach this end-result. Thank you to Wisconsin retailers and CAA for their efforts.
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Chris McCalla, Legislative Director
International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR)
