Cigar News: Cigar Regulation Bill Moves to the Office of Management and Budget

Cigar News: Cigar Regulation Bill Moves to the Office of Management and Budget

WASHINGTON, DC – Following a year of meetings and information sharing with the Food and Drug Administration Center for Tobacco Products (CTP), the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers’ Association has learned that the process to federally regulate cigars has moved into the next phase. Recently, the proposed rule on regulating cigars has moved from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. This agency will analyze the rule and work to determine economic impact on the industry, before releasing it for public comment. While we expected this process to be initiated before the end of October, the recent government shutdown has caused delay. IPCPR is now expecting the rule to be released before the end of November. To view more information about the proposed rule, please click here.

We continue to remain vigilant and are engrossed in protecting the needs of premium tobacco retailers and our industry partners. IPCPR will soon introduce a customized grassroots email system to support our efforts. You can become involved by using this resource to contact your elected officials and submit comment to CTP on how a proposed rule would impact your small business.
Please contact the IPCPR Senior Director of Federal Legislative Affairs, Kip Talley, with any questions about this process. He can be reached at kip@ipcpr.org and will help you become fully engaged in this important outreach.

While we do not know the detailed content of the proposed rule, we do know it has the potential to impact your small business and the premium cigar industry. IPCPR serves as a resource for you to ensure the voice of the retail tobacconist is being heard. Together, we can make a difference.