[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 55 (Tuesday, April 17, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E561]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               H.R. 4134

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. DIANE BLACK

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 17, 2012

  Mrs. BLACK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss H.R. 4134, which I 
introduced on March 5, 2012. This legislation will curtail a tax abuse 
involving the mass production of cigarettes through ``roll-your-own'' 
machines at retail establishments. Currently, so-called ``pipe 
tobacco'' is taxed at rates dramatically less than ``cigarette 
tobacco'' and ``roll-your-own tobacco.'' That has had the effect of 
forming an industry of retailers that put RYO machines in their stores 
that allow customers to manufacture cigarettes for far less than the 
cost of name-brand cigarettes.
  My legislation will require that RYO cigarettes are produced on a 
level playing field with all other cigarettes. In doing so--and this is 
very important--H.R. 4134 should be read as applying prospectively 
only--neither retailers nor consumers of RYO cigarettes before the date 
of enactment of my legislation should be forced to pay any taxes on 
cigarettes manufactured in these machines and sold before the date of 
enactment. I understand that there is litigation pending in this regard 
brought by the Department of the Treasury. My legislation should end 
that litigation and settle this issue once and for all.
  I also want to note that H.R. 4134 is not intended to affect small, 
hand-operated devices used by customers at home to assemble roll-your-
own cigarettes. These small devices, which customers take away from the 
retail establishment in original packaging and use for personal 
convenience and not for commercial purposes, have been sold for many 
decades without giving rise to the tax avoidance abuse my legislation 
seeks to address.
  I am very pleased that Senator Max Baucus amended the Senate-passed 
highway transportation bill with language very similar to my bill. I 
look forward to working with him and others in order to enact this law, 
and I urge my colleagues to cosponsor H.R. 4134 in the House of 
Representatives.

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