A bill that would slash the cigar tax in Minnesota from $3.50 per cigar to just $0.50 per stick has been introduced to the state legislature.

HF 1544 was introduced by Rep. Jim Nash (R-Waconia) along with eight co-sponsors on March 9, and following the bill’s first reading it was referred to the House Committee on Taxes. A companion bill, SF 1894, was introduced in the state Senate on March 19 and referred to the Senate Committee on Taxes.

While the tax rate on cigars in Minnesota is 95% of the wholesale price, a cap of $3.50 per cigar was placed on that tax when it was passed in May 2013.

The bill seeks not only to lower the tax on premium cigars but reworks the definition slightly, seeking to remove the term “hand-rolled” while leaving the term “hand-constructed.” The proposed definition reads:

“Premium cigar” means any cigar that is hand-constructed and hand-rolled, has a wrapper that is made entirely from whole tobacco leaf, has a filler and binder that is made entirely of tobacco, except for adhesives or other materials used to maintain size, texture, or flavor, and has a wholesale price of no less than $2.

If the bill were to pass the legislature, it would go into effect on July 1.

Raise it for Health, a coalition of Minnesota’s leading health and nonprofit organizations, decried the move as bad health policy and bad tax policy via a press release. “Cigars have higher levels of carcinogens than cigarettes, and research shows that higher tobacco prices help people quit, prevent youth smoking and save lives,” Dr. Russell Luepker, a cardiologist at the University of Minnesota told committee members. “Why would we undermine a policy that reduces smoking and give tax breaks on a product that kills people?”

“If this bill goes through, some cigars will cost as little as $2.50,” said Latrisha Vetaw, Program Officer at NorthPoint Health and Wellness Center in North Minneapolis. “Pushing down the price of tobacco hurts low-income people, many minorities and kids, because it pushes tobacco into their price range. That’s not worth a few extra dollars in the tobacco industry’s pocket.”

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Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.