Discount Cigar Store & More

Savannah, Georgia (PRWEB) August 21, 2010

Today’s sanctuary for and one of the last bastions of camaraderie, friendship and sociability – the corner cigar store – could become history along with many other businesses in Savannah if City Council has its way, says the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association.

The current proposal would eliminate exemptions in the Georgia state law by making all workplaces smoke-free. This includes all indoor and outdoor areas of bars, restaurants, private clubs and other businesses, including cigar stores and within 20 feet from the entrance to any such workplace.

The IPCPR, not considered ‘big tobacco’, is comprised of more than 2,000 retailers, manufacturers and distributors of premium cigars, tobacco and related accoutrements. The group is standing up for small, family-owned businesses whose right it is to determine for themselves whether or not to allow smoking on their premises. Three of Savannah’s premium cigar shops are IPCPR members.

“We’re not against all smoking bans. We are against legislated smoking bans,” said Chris McCalla, legislative director of the IPCPR. “Many restaurants, bars and other places of business have already declared themselves as ‘no smoking’ venues. That’s their right under the constitution. It’s when the government – local, state or federal – starts telling private citizens how to run their businesses that we have a problem.”

McCalla says that the fear of secondhand smoke has been blown out of proportion to reality. Nonetheless, that misplaced fear is what appears to be spinning the issue in favor of the anti-smoking forces, he maintains.

“I’ve read Savannah newspaper articles that are supposed to be writing unbiased articles about the issue saying unattributed things like there are ‘countless studies that show secondhand smoke is dangerous’ and ‘statistics (prove) the lethality of secondhand smoke’ and ‘restaurant servers must wade through smoke to deliver food to patrons.’ Ridiculous!” he said.

“For every such study – many of which are based on bad science if you look at them objectively – there are others that contradict them. And the alleged statistics are mostly fiction, to say the least, concocted out of whole cloth. It’s when you get specific with such broadly biased arguments that their absurdity becomes obvious. Fortunately, most of the online reader comments about such articles are against the proposed ban extension,” he said.

McCalla urged City Council members to look at the facts as established by no less than the federal government’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration of the Department of Labor – OSHA – which has set safe level standards for secondhand smoke that are up to 25,000 times higher than are normally found in bars and restaurants.

“Those OSHA standards are based primarily on studies by the American Cancer Society which have proven in conducting air quality testing of secondhand smoke that it absolutely does not constitute a health hazard justifying widespread legislated smoking bans,” he said.

McCalla complimented those City Council members who are thoughtfully considering all facets of the issue and said he hoped they would see the wisdom in a decision against expanding the state ban in Savannah. He reminded the council that many cities are reversing or reconsidering their earlier decisions to legislate smoking bans because of the negative impact those bans have had on local businesses.

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Some business owners worry the state tobacco tax increase, coupled with a federal tax increase on tobacco products, will put them out of business. Greg McGee has worked at the Pipe and Tobacco Shop for 20 years. He calls the state’s tobacco tax hike “excessive” and he worries his store will eventually close because of smaller profit margins.
He says the federal tax increase, to fund the SCHIP program, dramatically increased their costs. The federal tax hike included a 62 cent increase per pack of cigarettes. It also increased taxes on other products, like loose tobacco for customers who roll their own cigarettes.
“That…tax went from over $1 per pound to over $24 per pound of tobacco. It raised the rax over $23,” McGee said.
Now his business and customers are facing another tax hike with the state tobacco tax hike. The state increase raises the price per cigarette pack by 56 cents. It also increases the tax on other tobacco products.
“That all went up from 32% to 68%. That doubled the tax, and the SCHIP raises the cost considerably,” McGee said.
The state tax hike will fund a statewide trauma system and other healthcare initiatives.
“Our business will hurt badly,” McGee said. “Can you ask a customer paying $5 for a cigar to pay $8, once you pay for shipping and taxes?”
Even some employees are considering cutting back.
“Actually, I plan on quitting,” clerk Michael Cia said. “I have a good stock at home but I plan on quitting purchasing.”
McGee thinks some customers will cross state lines to buy tobacco products where the taxes are not as costly. He worries that their store will close.
“This is almost imminent that it could happen. We’re worried about it,” McGee said.
The Arkansas tobacco tax hike needs Governor Beebe’s signature before it will become law on March 1.

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