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• Dominican president to lobby against taxes on his country's tobacco 

President Leonel Fernandez will ask the United States Congress and the Government not to apply more taxes on cigars from Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Honduras and other Central America countries, said Agriculture minister Salvador Jiménez on Wednesday.

He said the chief executive will visit New York City, where he will meet with Representative Charles Rangel (D-New York) to explain the Dominican position to ahead of the application of new levies on cigars on the part of Congress.

He said Rangel has been very receptive to Dominican Republic’s position in view of intention the U.S. Government to apply a new tax on cigars.

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• Dominican cigar industry asks the U.S. Congress to reject new tax 

he head of the Senate’s Farm and Agribusiness Commission asked the Congress to reject a new tax on cigars, as it would “condemn the national tobacco industry."

Amílcar Romero (PLD-Duarte) said a new U.S. tax on cigars would cause losses of over US$100 million for the industry, in addition to the loss of jobs in one of the country’s poorest zones.

He said he stays in touch with ambassador in Washington, Flavio Darío Espinal, to lobby on the Dominican producers’ concern in the U.S. Senate.

The Cigar Producers Association (Procigar) stated their concern to Romero on the Dominican cigars’ future, if the new tax is approved. They said they cultivate in the country’s Cibao and Northwest regions close to 20,000 hectares, which can’t be used for any other type of crop.

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