Proposed Oregon Tobacco Licensing Fee Higher Than Anticipated

In January, we reported that an Oregon state senator was expected to introduced legislation that would create a new tobacco licensing fee for retailers in the state. That fee was expected to be $300, but it turns out it there could be an additional $1,000.

Rep. Brent Barton, D-40 and Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, D-17, have introduced H.B. 4103 which would require tobacco retailers to obtain a $1,000 license and renew it every five years. The rule would require the license to be paid by “smoke shops,” which are defined as business that generate at least 75 percent of revenue from the sale of tobacco and vaping products and accessories.

Smoke shops would have to re-apply and pay the fee every five years and would also be required to re-apply and pay the fee if they moved locations.

This could be an addition S.B. 1559, the bill we wrote about in January. That bill was introduced by Sen. Laurie Monnes Anderson, D-25, and Seiner Hayward. It would require retailers to register with the Oregon Department of Revenue.

While the $300 fee was dropped from that bill, it specifies that there would be a to-be-calculated fee associated with the license from the Department of Revenue. Funds collected would be used to help you anti-smoking promotion.

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. I previously co-founded and published TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry for more than a decade, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. In addition, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff here at halfwheel. I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.