A bill making its way through the legislature seeks to snuff out the so-called “grey-market” cigarettes. Representative Christopher Rants says these cigarettes are too readily available. They’re cigarettes made in the United States, exported overseas, then shipped back into the country and sold. The grey-market smokes are often sold out of the trunks of cars to kids. Rants says the cigarettes are sold without any taxes, making them cheaper and more available to minors.A bill which has already cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee would makeit illegal to sell or possess cigarettes which do not have tax stamps — andare marked “for export only.”Rants says studies show there’s a direct link between access to cheapcigarettes and teenage smoking. And Rants says legit retailers fear theirmarket is being tapped by the underground sales.
