03, November 2014: According to the Arizona Capitol Times and the Wall Street Journal, lawmakers in the state of Arizona are deciding whether to place taxes on e-cigs in order to compensate for a one billion dollar deficit in budget.

Stefanie Mach, who is both a member of the House Appropriations Committee and a Democratic Representative for the state made the following remarks in lieu of the possible e-cig taxation,

“It’s one option of many that we should look at adding to the Legislature. It certainly isn’t going to come close to the amount of money that we need to make up the deficit, but any little bit helps.”

Legislators in Arizona are enthralled with the concept of taxing electronic cigarettes to make-up a substantial portion of the enormous deficit that is predicted to increase by 2017. However, lawmakers are still uncertain on how they can propose regulations on e-cigarettes.

As a direct result of the sale of e-cigs, legislators have accrued a significant amount of debt. And already two other states in the U.S. have employed this sort of legislation which imposes taxes on the devices. In addition, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has faced the menacing debacle of implementing laws to regulate and categorize liquid nicotine products and e-cigs.

John Kavanagh, a Republican representative for the state said that by enforcing the taxation on electronic cigarettes that it could possibly discourage individuals from relying on them as an easy “quit smoking” aid.

He said, “The e-cigarettes, I am told, are not nearly as damaging to the body as tobacco is, and part of the reasoning for the tobacco tax is to compensate society for the additional costs in medical care that smokers cause.”

It is difficult to decipher what impact the taxation on e-cigs will have for the state of Arizona as a 2$ tax is already in place on actual cigarettes and certain options are variable.

Currently, Arizona has not placed any restrictions on the purchase and sale of electronic cigarettes and it was only in 2013 that a law was passed which made the sale of e-cigs illegal for those under the age of 18.

In addition, Tom Horne- Attorney General stated that e-cigs are excluded from the Smoke Free Arizona Act which makes it perfectly legal to smoke electronic cigarettes in public places, restaurants, and bars. However, Tempe and some other few cities in Arizona have placed a ban on them.

Phoenix resident and smoke shop owner of “BUTT OUT” gave the media news outlets this statement in regards to the proposed e-cig taxes,

“Lawmakers are making a claim nobody else is making. And really, they’re just saying they want to bring in more money.

E-cigs are powered by battery and use a liquid-form nicotine that creates a vapor when it is heated. They are most popularly sold at vape shops and are also available at many convenient stores.

“Nobody serious is even getting close to claiming that (e-cigarettes) do similar harm (as smoking tobacco), so by attempting to tax them the same way, lawmakers are making a claim nobody else is making. And really, they’re just saying they want to bring in more money,”

Denny also stated that the market may accept the E-cigarettes taxes better if the taxes are reasonable and not as stringent as the taxes that real cigarettes have. The ever-expanding e-cig industry is more prone to taking a stand against any laws which advocate otherwise.

About vapeindustries.com.au:

https://vapeindustries.com.au/ is an e cigarette company based in Australia.

https://vapeindustries.com.au/ has a supple selection of e cigarette starter kits and other e-cigarette related products on it.

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