Snuff Out "Little Cigars"

By Mark K. Matthews -

Attorneys general from 39 states and Guam are lobbying to change federal regulations that allow tobacco manufacturers to classify cigarettes as "little cigars," which they say allows these companies to skirt health restrictions and taxes.

In two petitions sent to federal regulators in April and May, the attorneys general called on the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) to modify its rules to prevent tobacco companies from labeling cigarettes as little cigars.

Little cigars avoid advertising and health restrictions imposed by a 1998 deal between tobacco companies and 46 state attorneys general. Called the Master Settlement Agreement, this deal prohibits techniques such as using cartoon characters in tobacco advertising.

Taxes on cigars are significantly lower, which allows tobacco companies to sell little cigars at about half the price of cigarettes, according to the attorneys' general petition. Little cigar manufacturers also don't have to report their ingredients to the Centers for Disease Control and they can avoid putting health-warning labels on cigar packages.

...smokin

Kansas City infoZine News - Attorneys Generals Hope to Snuff "Little Cigars" - USA

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