[Intl-tobacco] Anti-smuggling legislation introduced in US

[Robert Weissman]

Here is a press release from Congressman Lloyd Doggett and
Senator Ron Wyden announcing the Smuggled Tobacco Prevention
(SToP) Act.  Last week's EU / Philip Morris settlement is at:
http://www.philipmorrisinternational.com/pages/eng/busenv/EU_agreement.asp
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE           CONTACT:	Marshall Maher (Doggett)
July 12, 2004					(202) 225-4865
						Andrew Blotky (Wyden)
 		      				(202) 224-3789


DOGGETT, WYDEN COMMENT ON EU TOBACCO SMUGGLING DEAL, URGE CONGRESS TO
CONSIDER 'STOP ACT'

WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) and U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
(D-Ore.) commented on the settlement reached between the European Union
and Philip Morris on the subject of tobacco smuggling. Wyden and Doggett,
a member of the House Committee on Ways and Means, Subcommittee on Health,
will introduce on Tuesday, July 13th,  bipartisan legislation in the House
and Senate that will curb the international threat of tobacco smuggling.
This legislation, known as the Smuggled Tobacco Prevention Act (SToP Act),
contains new and stronger requirements on tobacco labeling, tracking and
reporting. It also includes provisions recommended by the World Health
Organization and adopted in the EU-Philip Morris Settlement to curb
tobacco smuggling and tax evasion.

"This significant agreement should spur Congress into acting against the
international tobacco smuggling threat," Rep. Doggett said.  "Big Tobacco
cannot justify doing less to reduce smuggling here than it has now
committed to doing in Europe.  The United States should adopt the
strongest possible laws to keep cheap, smuggled cigarettes out of the
hands of the world's youth and keep the profits from smuggled cigarettes
out of the hands of international terrorists."

"Halting tobacco smuggling is critical to protecting children from Bend,
Oregon to Bangladesh from the dangerous addiction to nicotine," said
Wyden. "The EU agreement shines a spotlight on the steps needed to fight
tobacco smuggling around the world and here in the U.S. The legislation
that Rep. Doggett and I plan to introduce can help stop smuggling here and
abroad through better tracking of tobacco products to make sure they
arrive at their intended destination and not in the back of a truck
profiting smugglers or potentially funding terrorism."

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has more
than 300 open cases involving tobacco smuggling, some of them reportedly
linked to terrorist organizations. Earlier this year, federal authorities
broke up a cigarette smuggling ring that spanned five states, including
Texas.  While tobacco giants knowingly turn a blind eye to this illicit
trade, smugglers sell their goods at below-market prices, sending profits
back to crime syndicates as well as Big Tobacco.

The SToP Act would require unique serial numbers on all tobacco packages
manufactured in or imported to the U.S. to facilitate tracking by
enforcement officials.  The bill, which has 100 co-sponsors in the House
of Representatives, would require each package of tobacco products
manufactured for export be marked to identify the nation of final
destination country to prevent illegal reentry into the U.S. or other
nations. Tobacco manufacturers, wholesalers, importers and export
warehouse proprietors would also be required to apply for a permit to
distribute tobacco and to comply with the requirements of the Contraband
Cigarette Trafficking Act and Jenkins Act.  The SToP Act also provides
whistleblower protections for those who provide information relating to
violations of federal contraband tobacco laws.

The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, American Heart Association, American
Lung Association, American Cancer Society, Infact, Federation of Tax
Administrators, Canadian Non-Smokers' Rights Association, and former
Surgeon General C. Everett Koop have all endorsed the SToP Act.  Dr. Koop
called the bill "the kind of public health measure that must be encouraged
by the federal government."

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