Fond du Lac Area Businesses On Health (FABOH) wants to help its members kick tobacco addiction by reimbursing those who complete a local cessation class.A pack of cigarettes will go up an additional 75 cents in Wisconsin for a total tax of $2.52 per pack starting Sept. 1. The increase makes Wisconsin's cigarette tax the fifth highest in the nation.
With the increase, the average price for a pack of cigarettes could be anywhere from $6 to $8.
"With the tobacco tax increase this September and Wisconsin going smoke-free in 2010, FABOH understands the importance of providing cessation services," said Jeff Butz, FABOH wellness director, in a press release. "For FABOH member company employees (or covered spouses) who are interested in quitting, the cost for the eight sessions is $125."
FABOH, he said, will reimburse the first 20 employees provided they attend a minimum of seven out of the eight classes and submit proof of attendance within 30 days of completing the class.
The class is also open to all community members who are interested, but reimbursement is only offered to FABOH members.
Sep 9, 2009
Class offered to help smokers kick the butts
Fond du Lac Area Businesses On Health (FABOH) wants to help its members kick tobacco addiction by reimbursing those who complete a local cessation class.A pack of cigarettes will go up an additional 75 cents in Wisconsin for a total tax of $2.52 per pack starting Sept. 1. The increase makes Wisconsin's cigarette tax the fifth highest in the nation.
With the increase, the average price for a pack of cigarettes could be anywhere from $6 to $8.
"With the tobacco tax increase this September and Wisconsin going smoke-free in 2010, FABOH understands the importance of providing cessation services," said Jeff Butz, FABOH wellness director, in a press release. "For FABOH member company employees (or covered spouses) who are interested in quitting, the cost for the eight sessions is $125."
FABOH, he said, will reimburse the first 20 employees provided they attend a minimum of seven out of the eight classes and submit proof of attendance within 30 days of completing the class.
The class is also open to all community members who are interested, but reimbursement is only offered to FABOH members.
With the increase, the average price for a pack of cigarettes could be anywhere from $6 to $8.
"With the tobacco tax increase this September and Wisconsin going smoke-free in 2010, FABOH understands the importance of providing cessation services," said Jeff Butz, FABOH wellness director, in a press release. "For FABOH member company employees (or covered spouses) who are interested in quitting, the cost for the eight sessions is $125."
FABOH, he said, will reimburse the first 20 employees provided they attend a minimum of seven out of the eight classes and submit proof of attendance within 30 days of completing the class.
The class is also open to all community members who are interested, but reimbursement is only offered to FABOH members.
Sep 7, 2009
Eyewitness News Tests Fire Safe Cigarettes
Smokers in Kansas may not realize it, but the cigarettes they're buying now are different from what was on the shelves just two months ago. In July, fire safe cigarettes became the only kind available in the state.
Experts hope the new cigarettes will cause fewer fires because they go out much more quickly. Fire safe cigarettes have several layers of paper surrounding the tobacco making it more difficult for oxygen to feed a burning cigarette. It means if the cigarette isn't actively being smoked, it'll burn itself out.
Since 2006, Wichita has seen 226 cigarette-caused fires.
"We deal with people who are having their worst day ever," says Wichita Fire Captain Stuart Bevis.
Capt. Bevis joined Eyewitness News Thursday to help compare the differences between the old and new cigarettes. He's investigated around 2,000 fires in his time with the department.
"They'll say nothing bad's ever happened to them when they've fallen asleep with their cigarette or had too much alcohol with their cigarette," says Capt. Bevis, "because it only takes one time. When that one time happens, it's a tragedy."
In our first test, we simply lit one of each type of cigarette and laid them in an ash tray. The fire safe cigarette went out in less than two minutes while the old cigarette burned all the way to the filter for 16 minutes.
"It does have a chance to be a little bit better," Capt. Bevis says of the new cigarettes. "Two and a half minutes smoldering against 15? That gives us a much better chance of it going out before something bad happens."
In the second test, we placed the lit cigarettes on an old recliner's cushion. Once again, the fire safe cigarette only takes a couple of minutes to go out, leaving a small burn in the polyester fabric. The old cigarette burns to the filter, leaving a long burn mark and almost getting to the cotton fabric inside the cushion's cover.
We use our last two tests checking what typically happens in a cigarette-caused fire, a cigarette that falls in a cushion corner or into a crevice. In these tests, both types of cigarettes burn to the filter.
In one of the tests, the fire safe cigarette chars a piece of highly-combustible lint. It likely means the recliner wasn't far from going up in flames. Capt. Bevis says it's a sign that just because the product is safer doesn't mean it's safe.
"They can have cigarettes that are supposed to put themselves out in two-and-a-half minutes, but if all the right circumstances fall into place, it can still lead to a fire if they're dealt with carelessly," says Capt. Bevis.
We wanted to know if you've ever heard of fire safe cigarettes. The results of our exclusive Fact Finder 12 scientific survey show 28% of you say you've heard of the new cigarettes while most, 72%, say you have not.
Not everyone likes the new cigarettes. More than 8,600 smokers nationwide have signed an online petition calling for a repeal of fire safe cigarettes. They complain the new cigarettes taste bad and have more carbon monoxide in each drag.
Experts hope the new cigarettes will cause fewer fires because they go out much more quickly. Fire safe cigarettes have several layers of paper surrounding the tobacco making it more difficult for oxygen to feed a burning cigarette. It means if the cigarette isn't actively being smoked, it'll burn itself out.
Since 2006, Wichita has seen 226 cigarette-caused fires.
"We deal with people who are having their worst day ever," says Wichita Fire Captain Stuart Bevis.
Capt. Bevis joined Eyewitness News Thursday to help compare the differences between the old and new cigarettes. He's investigated around 2,000 fires in his time with the department.
"They'll say nothing bad's ever happened to them when they've fallen asleep with their cigarette or had too much alcohol with their cigarette," says Capt. Bevis, "because it only takes one time. When that one time happens, it's a tragedy."
In our first test, we simply lit one of each type of cigarette and laid them in an ash tray. The fire safe cigarette went out in less than two minutes while the old cigarette burned all the way to the filter for 16 minutes.
"It does have a chance to be a little bit better," Capt. Bevis says of the new cigarettes. "Two and a half minutes smoldering against 15? That gives us a much better chance of it going out before something bad happens."
In the second test, we placed the lit cigarettes on an old recliner's cushion. Once again, the fire safe cigarette only takes a couple of minutes to go out, leaving a small burn in the polyester fabric. The old cigarette burns to the filter, leaving a long burn mark and almost getting to the cotton fabric inside the cushion's cover.
We use our last two tests checking what typically happens in a cigarette-caused fire, a cigarette that falls in a cushion corner or into a crevice. In these tests, both types of cigarettes burn to the filter.
In one of the tests, the fire safe cigarette chars a piece of highly-combustible lint. It likely means the recliner wasn't far from going up in flames. Capt. Bevis says it's a sign that just because the product is safer doesn't mean it's safe.
"They can have cigarettes that are supposed to put themselves out in two-and-a-half minutes, but if all the right circumstances fall into place, it can still lead to a fire if they're dealt with carelessly," says Capt. Bevis.
We wanted to know if you've ever heard of fire safe cigarettes. The results of our exclusive Fact Finder 12 scientific survey show 28% of you say you've heard of the new cigarettes while most, 72%, say you have not.
Not everyone likes the new cigarettes. More than 8,600 smokers nationwide have signed an online petition calling for a repeal of fire safe cigarettes. They complain the new cigarettes taste bad and have more carbon monoxide in each drag.
Sep 3, 2009
How Do Electronic Cigarettes Compare To The Real Thing?
Most resistance from smokers of regular tobacco-based cigarettes comes from the fact they believe the so-called smoke-less, or electronic cigarettes, won't taste the same. Truth is, the electronic cigarettes have been designed to be a real alternative, both in taste and feel, to a regular cigarette while instantly providing the smoker with the same degree of nicotine they expect with each drag.
Smoking an electronic cigarette involves a slightly different technique, similar to that of pipe smoking. Once the smoker takes a drag, nicotine is released directly into a mist and the sensation of it hitting the lungs is virtually identical to it's tobacco based counterpart. Nicotine, on average, reaches the lungs within five to ten seconds.
Afterward, smokers of the electronic cigarette typically don't complain of the soreness that typically accompanies smoking a regular cigarette, although some do experience a slight dryness from the propylene glycol; but this quickly passes.
Some manufacturers of the electronic cigarette have striven to mimic traditional brands of regular tobacco based cigarettes. The NJOY electronic cigarette, for example, comes in four strengths, zero (no nicotine) through strong (Marlboro) as well as flavored brands including menthol, apple or strawberry.
Another big difference between tobacco and electronic cigarettes is price. To get started, a starter kit is priced at about $110. A replacement (rechargeable) battery runs about $15, and the nicotine cartridges cost $25 for a set of five. Each set is equivalent to about two packs of cigarettes. Dollar for dollar, the electronic cigarette is actually cheaper than their unhealthy counterparts over time.
Most users polled the electronic cigarette is as close to the real things by as much as 90-95%. The vapor actually looks like smoke but is made up of water and other ingredients generally regarded as safe. The cartridges contain no tobacco nor do they produce tobacco smoke or smoke of any kind.
Another pleasant difference between electronic cigarettes and tobacco cigarettes is the incredible strength of the smell of stale tobacco given off by smokers. The smell permeates clothes, cars, carpets and drapes. This vanishes completely with electronic cigarettes, since there is no actual fire or burning tobacco. You're not inhaling (nor exhaling) all the oxidized compounds, therefore there's nothing left to cause an odor.
The downside in all of this, as if there were any, is the electronic cigarette will more than likely ruin the smoker's desire to return to typical tobacco based products. After using the smokeless electronic cigarette, taste buds regenerate. After a few months, if an electronic smoker picks up a regular cigarette it will more than likely taste vile.
An added benefit is the ability for the electronic smoker to smoke in virtually any place or environment. Pubs, Clubs, restaurants, theaters and airplanes, places which have banned cigarette smoke for decades are completely legal for electronic smokers since the e-cigarette produces no illegal by-products, and therefore no secondhand smoke.
Smoking an electronic cigarette involves a slightly different technique, similar to that of pipe smoking. Once the smoker takes a drag, nicotine is released directly into a mist and the sensation of it hitting the lungs is virtually identical to it's tobacco based counterpart. Nicotine, on average, reaches the lungs within five to ten seconds.
Afterward, smokers of the electronic cigarette typically don't complain of the soreness that typically accompanies smoking a regular cigarette, although some do experience a slight dryness from the propylene glycol; but this quickly passes.
Some manufacturers of the electronic cigarette have striven to mimic traditional brands of regular tobacco based cigarettes. The NJOY electronic cigarette, for example, comes in four strengths, zero (no nicotine) through strong (Marlboro) as well as flavored brands including menthol, apple or strawberry.
Another big difference between tobacco and electronic cigarettes is price. To get started, a starter kit is priced at about $110. A replacement (rechargeable) battery runs about $15, and the nicotine cartridges cost $25 for a set of five. Each set is equivalent to about two packs of cigarettes. Dollar for dollar, the electronic cigarette is actually cheaper than their unhealthy counterparts over time.
Most users polled the electronic cigarette is as close to the real things by as much as 90-95%. The vapor actually looks like smoke but is made up of water and other ingredients generally regarded as safe. The cartridges contain no tobacco nor do they produce tobacco smoke or smoke of any kind.
Another pleasant difference between electronic cigarettes and tobacco cigarettes is the incredible strength of the smell of stale tobacco given off by smokers. The smell permeates clothes, cars, carpets and drapes. This vanishes completely with electronic cigarettes, since there is no actual fire or burning tobacco. You're not inhaling (nor exhaling) all the oxidized compounds, therefore there's nothing left to cause an odor.
The downside in all of this, as if there were any, is the electronic cigarette will more than likely ruin the smoker's desire to return to typical tobacco based products. After using the smokeless electronic cigarette, taste buds regenerate. After a few months, if an electronic smoker picks up a regular cigarette it will more than likely taste vile.
An added benefit is the ability for the electronic smoker to smoke in virtually any place or environment. Pubs, Clubs, restaurants, theaters and airplanes, places which have banned cigarette smoke for decades are completely legal for electronic smokers since the e-cigarette produces no illegal by-products, and therefore no secondhand smoke.
Sep 1, 2009
State drops collection of taxes on Indian cigarettes
ALBANY — Despite a ballooning budget deficit, the Paterson administration quietly has written off taxes it had been expecting to collect on sales of cigarettes by American Indian retailers — an admission that yet another governor has no plans to resolve the long-standing, thorny matter.
In April, Gov. David A. Paterson and lawmakers agreed on a budget for the state's current fiscal year that projected revenue of $65 million from taxing cigarettes sold to non-Indians in smoke shops, through the mail or over the Internet from reservation-based businesses.
But with no fanfare — or even public notice — the administration has eliminated the $65 million, meaning the governor now does not expect to begin collecting the taxes at least until April 1, the start of the new fiscal year.
The decision drew immediate and sharp criticism from health groups and an association that represents non-Indian retailers who say they cannot compete with the American Indians, who do not charge the state's sales $2.75-per-pack excise tax.
"It's embarrassing, and it's outrageous that the Empire State can't seem to figure out how to collect this tax when just about every other state does," said Russell Sciandra, director of the Center for a Tobacco Free New York, which is connected with the American Cancer Society.
Critics say the state loses $1 billion annually by not collecting the cigarette tax. Seneca Nation of Indians retailers lead the country in the sales of untaxed cigarettes.
For years, state officials have worried about potential violence, such as the clash between state troopers and Indians on the Thruway in 1995, when then-Gov. George E. Pataki tried to end the tax-free sales.
Seneca Nation officials, who were working Friday on flood relief efforts, were unavailable to comment.
Last week, the Paterson administration released a 329-page update on state spending through the first quarter of the fiscal year.
The report said the administration believes the state now faces a $2.1 billion deficit this year, and Paterson is looking at spending cuts and other options to propose to a special session of the State Legislature, expected to be held next month. Lawmakers have not ruled out raising taxes to close the gap.
Deep in its pages, the spending update briefly mentions lower cigarette tax revenues, but makes no specific reference to jettisoning the cigarette tax collections.
During an interview on an unrelated topic, Robert Megna, the governor's budget director, revealed to The Buffalo News that the state is backing away from the projection of $65 million from the potential revenue source.
Matt Anderson, a spokesman for Megna, later said the $65 million was deleted from the budget "to prudently address potential risks to our receipts forecast."
"We continue to work diligently toward a negotiated settlement of this issue," he added.
Laws on the books already permit the state to collect the tax, which has been an issue going back to the days of Mario M. Cuomo's tenure as governor. Over the past decade, the dispute has intensified as the state increased cigarette taxes, widening the playing field between Indian and non-Indian retailers.
The Senecas have maintained that treaty rights going back to the days of George Washington give them the right to sell products, including cigarettes, without taxes.
They have long said they never will act as agents of the state government in collecting taxes, which they say would kill off a flourishing Western New York business that employs hundreds of people.
On numerous occasions, the State Legislature has sought to force Paterson, and governors before him, to collect the tax.
In January, Paterson said he wanted to resolve the issue through negotiation. But critics say that, with the stakes so lucrative, the Indian tribes, especially the Senecas, have little reason to negotiate.
"It's sending totally the wrong signal," James Calvin, executive director of the New York Association of Convenience Stores, said of the administration quietly striking the Indian cigarette tax money from the budget.
"If the state has a $2.1 billion deficit, it's crazy not to access the hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue that's readily available from this source," he added. "It's already a law. It's collectable. The United States Supreme Court has said we can collect it. Why would you ignore close to $1 billion when staring at such a huge deficit?"
In June 2008, the state raised its excise tax on a pack of cigarettes by $1.50 to $2.75. That gives an Indian retailer who does not charge the tax a built-in price advantage of $27.50 per carton.
"By the end of the fiscal year, the state and Gov. Paterson, we conservatively estimate, will have forgone $1 billion that is owed on Indian cigarette sales," Sciandra said.
In April, Gov. David A. Paterson and lawmakers agreed on a budget for the state's current fiscal year that projected revenue of $65 million from taxing cigarettes sold to non-Indians in smoke shops, through the mail or over the Internet from reservation-based businesses.
But with no fanfare — or even public notice — the administration has eliminated the $65 million, meaning the governor now does not expect to begin collecting the taxes at least until April 1, the start of the new fiscal year.
The decision drew immediate and sharp criticism from health groups and an association that represents non-Indian retailers who say they cannot compete with the American Indians, who do not charge the state's sales $2.75-per-pack excise tax.
"It's embarrassing, and it's outrageous that the Empire State can't seem to figure out how to collect this tax when just about every other state does," said Russell Sciandra, director of the Center for a Tobacco Free New York, which is connected with the American Cancer Society.
Critics say the state loses $1 billion annually by not collecting the cigarette tax. Seneca Nation of Indians retailers lead the country in the sales of untaxed cigarettes.
For years, state officials have worried about potential violence, such as the clash between state troopers and Indians on the Thruway in 1995, when then-Gov. George E. Pataki tried to end the tax-free sales.
Seneca Nation officials, who were working Friday on flood relief efforts, were unavailable to comment.
Last week, the Paterson administration released a 329-page update on state spending through the first quarter of the fiscal year.
The report said the administration believes the state now faces a $2.1 billion deficit this year, and Paterson is looking at spending cuts and other options to propose to a special session of the State Legislature, expected to be held next month. Lawmakers have not ruled out raising taxes to close the gap.
Deep in its pages, the spending update briefly mentions lower cigarette tax revenues, but makes no specific reference to jettisoning the cigarette tax collections.
During an interview on an unrelated topic, Robert Megna, the governor's budget director, revealed to The Buffalo News that the state is backing away from the projection of $65 million from the potential revenue source.
Matt Anderson, a spokesman for Megna, later said the $65 million was deleted from the budget "to prudently address potential risks to our receipts forecast."
"We continue to work diligently toward a negotiated settlement of this issue," he added.
Laws on the books already permit the state to collect the tax, which has been an issue going back to the days of Mario M. Cuomo's tenure as governor. Over the past decade, the dispute has intensified as the state increased cigarette taxes, widening the playing field between Indian and non-Indian retailers.
The Senecas have maintained that treaty rights going back to the days of George Washington give them the right to sell products, including cigarettes, without taxes.
They have long said they never will act as agents of the state government in collecting taxes, which they say would kill off a flourishing Western New York business that employs hundreds of people.
On numerous occasions, the State Legislature has sought to force Paterson, and governors before him, to collect the tax.
In January, Paterson said he wanted to resolve the issue through negotiation. But critics say that, with the stakes so lucrative, the Indian tribes, especially the Senecas, have little reason to negotiate.
"It's sending totally the wrong signal," James Calvin, executive director of the New York Association of Convenience Stores, said of the administration quietly striking the Indian cigarette tax money from the budget.
"If the state has a $2.1 billion deficit, it's crazy not to access the hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue that's readily available from this source," he added. "It's already a law. It's collectable. The United States Supreme Court has said we can collect it. Why would you ignore close to $1 billion when staring at such a huge deficit?"
In June 2008, the state raised its excise tax on a pack of cigarettes by $1.50 to $2.75. That gives an Indian retailer who does not charge the tax a built-in price advantage of $27.50 per carton.
"By the end of the fiscal year, the state and Gov. Paterson, we conservatively estimate, will have forgone $1 billion that is owed on Indian cigarette sales," Sciandra said.
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