DRUMS, Pa. -- The Traditional Cigar Manufacturing & Small Business Jobs Preservation Act is intended to keep premium cigars out of the Family Smoking Prevention & Tobacco Control Act, said a statement released by cigar distributor Best Cigar Prices.
H.R. 1639 and S. 1461 are part of an effort to protect the cigar industry from "unfair and unwarranted" regulation by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA), it said. Both bills make the points that the cigar industry provides thousands of jobs in the United States, does not market to minors and that cigar smoking is a nonaddictive pastime enjoyed by adults.
It said that stricter regulations on premium cigars would mean a ban on mail order cigar sales; a ban on walk-in humidors; a ban on cigar events where free cigars would be available to legal-age adults; limits on special release and small-batch cigars due to mandates that cigar blends be submitted to the FDA for pre-approval; limits on nicotine levels in cigars to near zero, severely impacting the flavor of cigars; and higher taxes on cigars.
The Traditional Cigar Manufacturing & Small Business Jobs Preservation Act has garnered support from many members of Congress and Senate as well as the cigar community, including U.S. Representative Fred Upton (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Energy & Commerce Committee, who became a co-sponsor of H.R. 1639, and U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), an important member of Senate with seats on the Appropriations, Budget, Armed Services and Judiciary Committees, is now a co-sponsor of S. 1461.
A petition submitted to the White House reached 25,000 signatures in just over a week.
Drums, Pa.-based Best Cigar Prices, a leading online cigar distributor, carries, sells and promotes all major brands of premium cigars, from the world's bestselling brands to hard-to-find boutique lines Arturo Fuente cigars, CAO cigars, Acid cigars and cigar accessories such as cigar cutters, cigar humidors, cigar ashtrays and cigar lighters.
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