On Monday, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced a lawsuit against two “roll-your-own” cigarette shops, alleging that they are evading taxes by not charging customers the required $6.46 cigarette tax. The shops say they don’t need to pay these taxes because they are just selling cigarette ingredients. Similar lawsuits have been filed in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Wisconsin. The suit follows a series of laws passed by the city that restrict the locations where smokers can light up and where cigarettes can be sold. New York state also imposes the highest cigarette tax of any state, and the city tacks on another $2-per-pack tax. Supporters of the tax say it reduced the city’s smoking rate.Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.
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