Forum editorial: Minn. tax on tobacco is a health tax

Opponents of Minnesota’s new tobacco tax seem to believe the $2.83 per pack of cigarettes tax is about only revenue and business. It’s not. It’s first and foremost about public health. While the tax has had expected impacts on revenue and business since it went into effect July 1, its primary purpose is to discourage […]

E-Cigarette trend catching on, but what are the effects?

by Stephanie Zepelin BOISE — It might be a trend you have noticed: electronic cigarettes. The devices use battery power to heat a liquid (usually containing nicotine) the user inhales. Some folks are choosing this option over traditional cigarettes. Electronicstix, a company that started in Utah, just opened their first store in Boise. “We have […]

Our view: State, feds can step up for e-cig safety

Duluth News Tribune Editorial Three weeks ago today, Duluth made headlines across the state, becoming the first city in Minnesota to ban e-cigarettes indoors where tobacco use already is forbidden, among other restrictions and regulations. Then, last week, Hermantown made news by passing a moratorium on the sale and use of electronic cigarettes inside public […]

E-Cigarette Ads Spark Lawmakers’ Concern for Youths

By Sophie Novack An advertisement for Blu electronic cigarettes shows a glitzed-up, scantily clad Jenny McCarthy seated in a club, smoking—or “vaping”—a sleek black tube with a blue glow at the tip. “Blu satisfies me,” she says, as the camera pans out to show her chatting with an attractive male suitor who is also holding an […]

Minnesota cigarette sales down, but tobacco revenue up

By: Mark Zdechlik, MPR News 90.3 FM, INFORUM Cigarette sales in Minnesota have dropped since a $1.60 per pack tax increase took effect July 1, as tobacco sellers have feared. Early Minnesota Department of Revenue numbers show cigarette stamp sales dropped more than 35 percent this July compared to July a year ago. Tobacco stamp sales […]