Cigarette and Tobacco News:

How Texans voted in Congress

Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act of 2009 or PACT Act - Amends the Jenkins Act to:
(1) include smokeless tobacco as a regulated substance;
(2) impose shipping and recordkeeping requirements on delivery sellers (sellers using the telephone, mails, or the Internet) of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco;
(3) require common carriers of cigarette products to obtain age and identity verification upon delivery of such products;
(4) require the Attorney General to compile and publish a list of delivery sellers of cigarettes or smokeless tobacco who have not complied with the registration or other requirements of such Act;
(5) increase criminal penalties and impose new civil penalties for violations of this Act; and
(6) grant jurisdiction to U.S. district courts to prevent and restrain violations of this Act and direct the Attorney General to administer and enforce this Act. Amends the federal criminal code to:
(1) treat cigarettes and smokeless tobacco as nonmailable and prohibit such items from being deposited in or carried through the U.S. mails; and
(2) authorize officers of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) to enter the premises of certain cigarette shippers to inspect records and inventories. Prohibits a tobacco product manufacturer or importer from selling or delivering in states cigarettes not in compliance with model or qualifying state statutes. Limits the applicability of this Act with respect to Indian tribes and certain tribal matters. Directs the ATF Director to create regional contraband tobacco trafficking teams and a Tobacco Intelligence Center to monitor and coordinate tobacco diversion investigations.

Tobacco Commerce: Passed, 397-11, a bill (HR 1676) requiring sellers of large quantities of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco in interstate commerce to comply with state tax laws and register with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATFE). The bill awaits Senate action. A yes vote was to pass the bill.

Gohmert(R)Tyler - YES
Poe(R)Humble - YES
Johnson(R)Plano - YES
Hall(R)Rockwall - YES
Hensarling(R)Dallas - ABSENT
Barton(R)Arlington - YES
Culberson(R)Houston - YES
Brady(R)The Woodlands - YES
Al Green(D)Houston - YES
McCaul(R)Austin - YES
Conaway(R)Midland - YES
Granger(R)Fort Worth - YES
Thornberry(R)Clarendon - YES
Paul(R)Surfside - NO
Hinojosa(D)Mercedes - YES
Reyes(D)El Paso - YES
Edwards(D)Waco - YES
Jackson Lee(D)Houston - YES
Neugebauer(R)Lubbock - YES
Gonzalez(D)San Antoniov
Smith(R)San Antonio - YES
Olson(R)Sugar Land - YES
Rodriguez(D)San Antonio - ABSENT
Marchant(R)Coppell - NO
Doggett(D)Austin - YES
Burgess(R)Flower Mound - YES
Ortiz(D)Corpus Christi - YES
Cuellar(D)Laredo - YES
Gene Green(D)Houston - YES
Johnson(D)Dallas - YES
Carter(R)Round Rock - YES
Sessions(R)Dallas - YES

Tobacco History:
Cigarettes and Literature