Author: Jonathan Shaer

Now that the dust has settled on the Health and Human Services Committee hearing for LD 1550, a bill that would ban the legal sale of all flavored tobacco in the state, it’s time to sift through the testimony and get a few things straight. The legislature and the good people of Maine deserve to know what is real and what is spin. Anyone willing to watch even just a couple of the eight hours of testimony will quickly realize the real target of the legislation should be electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) flavors like cotton candy, sour melon and Caribbean…

The nonpartisan Revenue Forecasting Committee met recently and determined Maine is in a strong financial position, with the General Fund expected to be bolstered by almost $462 million for the current fiscal year. This is in addition to the anticipated $6 billion windfall from the federal stimulus package. Great news, to be sure, but it begs the question why the Maine legislature would continue to consider doubling the tax rate on every type of tobacco product, including a pack of cigarettes, from $2 to $4. With the good budget news, Governor Mills took a victory lap saying: “The State revenues…

The Maine Legislature will soon debate LD 1550, a bill that would ban the legal sale of all flavored tobacco products in the state, and in the process, dismantle the state’s licensed, regulated, enforced and taxed framework that exists to ensure these age-restricted products are sold only to adults. A similar policy in Massachusetts has failed with dreadful consequences, and Maine would be well-advised not to follow suit. By now, most know that flavored vape products have considerable youth appeal. But LD 1550 goes well beyond addressing flavored vape, and would ban all flavored tobacco products including traditional products like mint/wintergreen…