Florida Representative Files Bill to Tax Tobacco Pipes!

    October 7th, 2009

 

By Bob Tate

PipesMagazine.com has just become aware, by way of the Orlando Sentinel, that Florida Democratic Rep. Darryl Rouson has filed a bill to introduce a tax on tobacco pipes in Florida. He claims that he is targeting ‘other’ types of pipes that are used for smoking illegal substances, but we all know where this is going to lead. The proposed new tax (surtax) that will be introduced is a staggering 25%! That is 25% on top of all of the other sales taxes and use taxes that are already in place!

Mr. Rouson says, and I quote,
“We all know the head shops, gas stations, and novelty stores in Florida are selling drug paraphernalia under the charade of being “tobacco pipes,’” Rouson said in a press release for HB 187. “If these items are to be available to the citizens of Florida, then we should charge a surtax on these consumers who are obviously using the pipes to do drugs.”

But according to his proposed bill (there is an excerpt from the bill as well as a link to the bill at the end of the article) it says that it includes all pipes regardless of whether they are sold for legal purposes or in violation of the law. That is a nice piece of double talk and contradiction, wouldn’t you say? Read the rest of this entry »