Tweet CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) – Since the start of 2011, Alcohol Law Enforcement agents have handed out more than 100 citations statewide to clerks selling tobacco products to underage kids. ALE agents say seven of the violations happened at Charlotte gas stations and convenience stores, many of them along Park Road in south Charlotte. The clerks who sold the tobacco products could face a $1,000 fine and possibly 30 days community service. In ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet The Assembly Taxation Committee held a hearing Tuesday on AB 333, which calls for an increase on all alcohol and tobacco products. Democratic Assemblywoman Peggy Pierce said proposed increase in sin taxes really isn’t that dramatic. “We’re talking about six cents on a bottle of wine,” said Pierce. No one would even notice that or even a 45 cent hike on high end liquor.” The state hasn’t raised taxes on t ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet The following rules are taken word for word from each school’s student athlete handbook: Danbury High School Mood altering chemical use — tobacco, alcohol, drugs (illegal and non-prescription): There will be absolutely no use or possession of any quantity of tobacco (including smokeless), alcohol, or illegal/non-prescription drugs, including steroids and performance enhancing substances or supplements, by a Danbury athlete. [cap ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet HELENA — University of Montana sophomore Bambi Erving says the state’s anti-tobacco programs not only convinced her to quit smoking but also helped turn her life around at age 15. Erving, of Plains, had left her family’s troubled home to move into a trailer house with other teenagers and young adults, where she said drug, alcohol and tobacco use was the norm. A high school counselor suggested that she get involved with reACT, a youth ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet We applauded back in December when the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced that it was seeking an emergency rule requiring gun dealers near the Mexican border to report multiple purchases of high-power semiautomatic rifles that use a detachable magazine. It looked as if the Obama administration was finally awakening to the urgent need to combat the illegal trafficking of AK-47s and other assault weapons across the ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet Nick Clegg is demanding councils be given the power to impose a massive range of new local taxes. Among the levies he suggests are for fuel, alcohol, office parking, landfill and even speeding. But the Liberal Democrat Deputy Prime Minister is being blocked by Eric Pickles, the Tory minister who is in charge of local government. Hard-pressed taxpayers – who have witnessed enormous council tax rises over the past decade, and are now strugg ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet SACRAMENTO — Some big targets were left largely untouched in Gov. Jerry Brown’s call for shared sacrifice in his proposed budget. In his plan to raise $12 billion in taxes, Brown avoided a source of revenue Democrats have been going after for years: oil severance fees. Extra taxes on alcohol, tobacco and the wealthy, also targets of Democrats in recent years, were also bypassed. And, in a nod to his labor allies, Brown did littl ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet When folks talk about gateway drugs that lead to addictions and a variety of problems, they should be focusing on nicotine. The data from a variety of sources show that early use of tobacco is related to addictions and other problems that are likely to follow. By early use, I am referring to tobacco use that often starts during the middle school grades. A recent statewide survey in Arkansas found that the average age of first tobacco use wa ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet ONLY half-way into the first 100 days in office, the cash-strapped Aquino government is already scraping the bottom of the barrel to fund projects that would deliver its promises to the people. And the best way to fill the coffers, as a quick-fix solution suggested by several quarters – including or particularly, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry – is to again increase the excise tax rates on alcohol and tobacco products. ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet Louisiana State Police are assisting in the investigation of a state office whose top official resigned suddenly on Friday, officials said Saturday. Murphy J. Painter, veteran commissioner of the Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control, quit Friday without any official explanation. State Revenue Secretary Cynthia Bridges made the announcement in a one-sentence news release. [caption id="attachment_6891" align="alignleft" width="300 ... Jump to full article >>