Post by gski on Sept 12, 2009 6:46:00 GMT -5
New Fee for Tobacco Retailers
New ‘mom and pop’ tax surprise
Retailers are up in arms after getting notice of a surprise, 5000 percent increase in the cost of their NYS tobacco sales licenses.
Store owners say they first learned of the hike-which increased the cost of an annual permit from $100 to as much as $5000, beginning Sept. 1-in renewal letters they received from Albany.
The new fee will force some stores to stop selling smokes, while others will pass along the increase to customers in the form of higher prices.
The new fee was one of more than 100 approved by Bill Stachowski , who is the chairman of the Senate’s small business committee and grew up working in his family’s ‘mom and pop’ neighborhood store,and Antione Thompson who claims that he cares so much for the businesses and the under privileged..
Tobacco retailers are up in arms, trying to figure out how they’ll handle a new fee imposed by the state.
Starting September 1, the license fee to sell tobacco products is going up at least 1000%.
Francis Gray owns Gray’s Wholesale in Clayton.
He depends on sales of cigarettes and tobacco products to help his business.
However, the new fee could change things.
“There are a lot of smaller retailers who won’t elect to pay the $1,000,” says Gray. “A lot of those are our customers, so obviously, we’re going to lose them.”
Retailers are currently paying $100 for a tobacco license, but when a retailer’s license expires and it’s time to apply for a new one, they’ll be paying a lot more.
If their gross sales are under $1 million, the new fee will be $1,000.
If their sales are between $1 million at $10 million, the fee will be $2,500.
If the retailer brings in more than $10 million, the fee will be $5,000.
Gray estimates about 20% of his customers are small businesses selling tobacco products, so if they can no longer afford to maintain their tobacco licenses, Gray says he’s worried he could lose that business.
WOW! Talk about regulating! So if this affects tobacco sales and they don't get the increased revenue from all the rest of their taxes on tobacco....how are they going to fund all the programs that were based on their new taxes?
PS - For those of us who don't smoke cigarettes, but drink soda, wine, beer...our increases are coming from the State soon and then we'll have the Federal increase on top of it....we'll start to feel how the smokers do..without the cough.
New ‘mom and pop’ tax surprise
Retailers are up in arms after getting notice of a surprise, 5000 percent increase in the cost of their NYS tobacco sales licenses.
Store owners say they first learned of the hike-which increased the cost of an annual permit from $100 to as much as $5000, beginning Sept. 1-in renewal letters they received from Albany.
The new fee will force some stores to stop selling smokes, while others will pass along the increase to customers in the form of higher prices.
The new fee was one of more than 100 approved by Bill Stachowski , who is the chairman of the Senate’s small business committee and grew up working in his family’s ‘mom and pop’ neighborhood store,and Antione Thompson who claims that he cares so much for the businesses and the under privileged..
Tobacco retailers are up in arms, trying to figure out how they’ll handle a new fee imposed by the state.
Starting September 1, the license fee to sell tobacco products is going up at least 1000%.
Francis Gray owns Gray’s Wholesale in Clayton.
He depends on sales of cigarettes and tobacco products to help his business.
However, the new fee could change things.
“There are a lot of smaller retailers who won’t elect to pay the $1,000,” says Gray. “A lot of those are our customers, so obviously, we’re going to lose them.”
Retailers are currently paying $100 for a tobacco license, but when a retailer’s license expires and it’s time to apply for a new one, they’ll be paying a lot more.
If their gross sales are under $1 million, the new fee will be $1,000.
If their sales are between $1 million at $10 million, the fee will be $2,500.
If the retailer brings in more than $10 million, the fee will be $5,000.
Gray estimates about 20% of his customers are small businesses selling tobacco products, so if they can no longer afford to maintain their tobacco licenses, Gray says he’s worried he could lose that business.
WOW! Talk about regulating! So if this affects tobacco sales and they don't get the increased revenue from all the rest of their taxes on tobacco....how are they going to fund all the programs that were based on their new taxes?
PS - For those of us who don't smoke cigarettes, but drink soda, wine, beer...our increases are coming from the State soon and then we'll have the Federal increase on top of it....we'll start to feel how the smokers do..without the cough.