Seen in the Knoxville News-Sentinel:
Starting today, state Department of Revenue agents will begin stopping Tennessee motorists spotted buying large quantities of cigarettes in border states, then charging them with a crime and, in some cases, seizing their cars.[...]
Farr said the program is partly an “education initiative” to make people aware of tobacco tax provisions in state law and a response to complaints from Tennessee tobacco retailers about “streams of Tennessee license plates crossing the border” from out-of-state retailers.
Under state law, bringing more than two cartons of cigarettes into the state without paying Tennessee taxes is a “Class B” misdemeanor, carrying punishment of up to six months in jail and/or a $500 fine. Bringing 25 or more cartons is a “Class E” felony, with minimum penalty of one year in prison and a maximum of six years plus a fine of up to $3,000.
In addition, the specific state statute dealing with untaxed cigarettes provides that vehicles used to transport more than two cartons “are considered contraband and are subject to seizure,” says a Department of Revenue statement.
While I certainly am not a fan on smoking, I have found the concept of states generating revenue from smokers’ addiction to be rather offensive. Arresting folks who are buying cheaper smokes across the state line just seems mean-spirited.
Next thing you know, Tennessee Department of Revenue will want to poke around the luggage of folks returning from overseas, who restock their tobacco supplies at the duty-free stores….