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The Seneca Nation of Indians today blasted the United States Senate for its passage of the PACT Act, a measure that will substantially limit distribution of tobacco products produced and sold by Native American businesses.
The PACT Act which was approved by the Senate Thursday night, will destroy more than 1,000 native and non-native tobacco industry jobs here in Western New York, according to Seneca Nation President Barry E. Snyder Sr.
“The PACT Act is being portrayed as a tool to fight cigarette smuggling. In reality, it is about big tobacco protecting market share. This action will result in the death of legitimate, treaty-sanctioned Native American commerce, causing significant economic harm, President Snyder said.
“We will not back down. We will pursue an aggressive campaign of outreach and education to inform the voters of Western New York which political leaders stand with the Seneca Nation and those who don’t.”
The Seneca Nation maintains the measure, which has attracted strong support and lobbying efforts from mainstream tobacco corporations, led by Philip Morris, said it is an overt attempt by big cigarette corporations to simply stomp out any market competition.
“What we’re witnessing is an effort by Philip Morris and other global tobacco companies to wipe out competition anyway they can. In this case, at the expense of our economy and our federal treaty rights,” Snyder said.
“Not one Senator stood up for Indian Country; they should be ashamed of themselves for selling out our rights and local jobs.”
The Nation’s Foreign Relations Committee (FRC) has focused considerable attention on defeating the PACT Act. Nation Council Chairman Richard E. Nephew, co-chair of the committee, noted that tobacco is a legal product and the Seneca Nation regulates and monitors the manufacture and sale of tobacco products consistent with federal treaty rights.
“Western New Yorkers should be urging Congress, especially our local Representatives Brian Higgins, Louise Slaughter and Chris Lee, not to allow Philip Morris to take jobs and money away from the Seneca Nation and the regional economy. What hurts the Seneca, hurts Western New York, Councilor Nephew said.
“Passage of the Pact Act by the US Senate should draw outrage and opposition from every corner of Indian Country.
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"Can you imagine a piece of legislation that is so common sense, so painfully obvious that, even in Washington's partisan climate, it passes the U.S. Senate unanimously? That’s what the PACT Act is and the American Cancer Society applauds Senators Schumer and Gilibrand for their leadership in making this much needed public health measure law.
Don’t believe the hype on billboards or the hyperbole of Internet tobacco peddlers. Ending the sale of cigarettes through the U.S. mail will dramatically cut into the illegal, un-taxed tobacco trade. And let’s face facts, cigarettes kill people and when these bootleg operations loose, the public wins.
"The PACT Act is being portrayed as a tool to fight cigarette smuggling. In reality, it is about big tobacco protecting market share. This action will result in the death of legitimate, treaty-sanctioned Native American commerce, causing significant economic harm, President Snyder said.
"We will not back down. We will pursue an aggressive campaign of outreach and education to inform the voters of Western New York which political leaders stand with the Seneca Nation and those who don't."
A bill in Washington that has already passed both the House and Senate would make it illegal to sell cigarettes through the mail. If it receives President Obama's signature, the Pact Act could be bad news for the Seneca Nation, whose mail order cigarette business is one of their most profitable.
Although Seneca Nation of Indians' officials think action taken Thursday by the U.S. Senate could cost the area 1,000 jobs, others are praising the action, which will next go to the House of Representatives for a vote.
The measure, the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act, would prohibit tobacco products produced and sold by Native American businesses to be mailed through the U.S. Postal Service. Although the bill was previously passed by the House of Representatives, minor changes made by the Senate will result in the bill's return to the House for another vote.
"The PACT Act will deal a destructive blow to the private sector economy at the Seneca Nation and have negative repercussive effects on all of Western New York," said Richard Nephew, chairman of the nation's governing body, the Seneca Nation Tribal Council and co-chairman of their Foreign Relations Committee.
"Cigarettes should not be sold in the mail or anywhere else to children or minors," said U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer.
A late night vote in the U-S Senate could threaten a portion of the Seneca Nation of Indians cigarette business. Senators voted unanimously to ban the U-S Postal Service from mailing tobacco products. . . .
The complete statement from the Seneca Nation of Indians:
CATTARAUGUS TERRITORY, NY -- Members of the Seneca Nation Council and the Foreign Relations Committee emphatically opposed action taken by the United States Senate yesterday which voted to pass the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act (PACT Act). The measure, which now goes to the House for a vote, would prohibit tobacco products produced and sold by Native American businesses to be mailed through the US Postal Service.
Richard Nephew, the Chair of Seneca Nation Council and CoChair of the Foreign Relations Committee said that the Senate's action will cost Western New York more than 1,000 tobacco industry jobs, jobs held by Native and non-Native alike. "The PACT Act will deal a destructive blow to the private sector economy at the Seneca Nation and have negative repercussive effects on all of Western New York," said Councilor Nephew.
"The passage of the PACT Act should draw outrage and opposition from every corner of Indian Country. This is not so much about tobacco consumption as it is about who profits from it. Aside from tobacco, all Indian nations should be concerned about the federal government's attempt to confer further jurisdictional power to states over Indian Territories; this invites much trouble."
The Coalition to Stop Contraband Tobacco today praised the U.S. Senate for passing S. 1147, the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act of 2009. Sponsored by Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI) and co-sponsored by a bipartisan group of 20 senators, this legislation will help combat online cigarette sales that have robbed hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues from the states and that undermine state laws that prevent youth access to tobacco products.
"Passage of the PACT Act is a huge victory for American taxpayers, American small business owners and America's youth," said Scott Ramminger, AWMA president and CEO and coalition spokesperson. "We applaud the Senate for its action today and thank Sen. Kohl for his leadership in ensuring that contraband tobacco sales are eliminated."
By a unanimous vote, the Senate on Thursday passed a bill to eliminate mail-order cigarettes, a victory for public health advocates and a defeat for the New York Indian tribe that dominates the business.
The measure was approved by the House last spring but then stalled in the Senate amid a lobbying campaign by the tribe, the Seneca Nation, which controls a $1 billion-a-year tobacco-and-gambling empire.
The Senecas and their lobbyists rallied other tribes in the name of tribal sovereignty. They also asserted that the bill could cost the struggling economy of western New York more than 1,000 jobs. And they threatened to spend $250,000 urging the defeat this fall of Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, because she supported the bill.
Until Thursday, a handful of Democratic senators -- all of them acting anonymously -- had held up passage of the measure, but none had publicly opposed it. . . .
In a statement, the Seneca Nation called the legislation "a 21st-century Little Bighorn-type battle."
"We will pursue an aggressive campaign of outreach and education to inform the voters of western New York which political leaders stand with the Seneca Nation and those who don't," Barry E. Snyder Sr., president of the Seneca Nation, said in the statement. He added: "Not one senator stood up for Indian Country; they should be ashamed of themselves for selling out our rights and local jobs."
The Senate late Thursday unanimously passed a bill that could devastate the Seneca Nation's mail-order cigarette business, voting to ban the U.S. Postal Service from mailing tobacco products.
The Senate's sudden and bipartisan passage of the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act thrilled anti-smoking advocates and surely will anger the Senecas, who have said the bill could threaten as many as 1,000 jobs in Western New York.
The House passed its version of the bill by a 397-11 margin last May.
"Can you imagine a piece of legislation that is so common sense, so painfully obvious that, even in Washington's partisan climate, it passes the U.S. Senate unanimously?" said Gretchen Leffler, regional vice president of the American Cancer Society in Western New York. "That's what the PACT Act is."
Leffler praised New York's senators, Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten E. Gillibrand, for standing firm in support of the bill. Gillibrand in particular has been the target of a Seneca Nation publicity campaign aimed at pressuring her to abandon her support for the legislation.
Some smokers are fuming over the idea of a smoke-free policy for several public areas in Plattsburgh.
Plattsburgh city councilors will vote Thursday night on a tobacco-free policy for all city parks, recreation trails and paths and the city beach.
Steve Peters with the Recreation Department, who supports the policy said restricting tobacco products in these areas will help cut down on litter and send a positive message to young adults.
Of New York's nearly 1 million cigarette smokers, almost 7,500 die from smoking-related illnesses each year, according to a new anti-smoking campaign by the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
The "Reverse the Damage" campaign seeks to educate New Yorkers about the health benefits of giving up smoking by sharing little-known facts to encourage quitting.
Graphic advertisements showing the dangers of tobacco will appear in the subway and on bus shelters, as well as on television and radio, the Associated Press reported.
While most anti-smoking ads use graphic images to show the long-term effects of tobacco, few serve to remind people just how quickly the human body heals once it's weaned off cigarettes.
The Bloomberg administration just released a new set of ads aimed at doing just this.
Check out the ads below to see the city's latest attempt to stamp out smoking.
(WARNING: Some graphic images)
Plattsburgh officials want residents to enjoy healthy public places, so they're looking to make them tobacco-free.
The City Council will vote tonight on a policy that bans smoking at all city parks, recreation trails, paths and the City Beach.
New York City's new campaign to help smokers quit reminds them of the damage to their bodies and how quickly it is possible to heal.
The ad campaign by Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration was announced Wednesday. It will feature ads on subways and bus shelters, and television and radio spots.
The ads feature graphic images of smoking-related problems, like tumors.