CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The tobacco tax bill advanced to third reading in the state House of Delegates Monday, the sixth day of a special session to craft next year’s budget.
The legislation keeps the proposed tax hike at 45 cents on a pack of cigarettes which was approved by the State Senate as proposed by Governor Earl Ray Tomblin. But House members adopted an amendment which would exempt e-cigarettes, vaping fluid, or any associated products from the tax increase legislation.
“We’ve heard a lot of stuff here, but what I’ve heard from certain members of my own party is, ‘It’s all about the money,'” said Berkeley County Delegate Larry Faircloth in support of the amendment. “Forget the possibility of actually helping people find a less harmful method to get away from tobacco.”
The measure won support from many who considered it an emerging product which could be a less dangerous alternative to cigarettes and could help others get off tobacco.
“Without this amendment and the taxation, this amendment would make vaping more expensive than smoking?” asked Delegate Mike Pushkin (D-Kanawha) asked of Faircloth on the House Floor. “Absolutely, it would actually increase the cost of the product to where you would actually lose some of the people who have changed to a less harmful product and drive them back to big tobacco,” Faircloth responded.
The amendment to exempt vaping and e-cigarettes won approval on a 52-43 vote. Delegates approved a second amendment to exempt vaping products in another section of the bill was approved on a voice vote.
The first amendment offered to the bill would have excluded all products with the exception of cigarettes from the tax increase. Delegate Marty Gearheart (R-Mercer) offered the amendment specifically exempting smokeless tobacco,cigars, and the vaping products from the tax increase.
“I don’t chew tobacco, I don’t smoke cigars, and I don’t vape, but I do believe this is a tax increase on West Virginians,” said Gearheart. “Like many things we do here in West Virginia while it may or may not be good for us, we do those things and we sell them in an attempt to be competitive.”
Gearheart’s amendment failed 28-67.
The bill was engrossed and advanced to third reading after the consideration of the three amendments.