Senecas See Comeback Over Cigarette Sales

An article in the New York Times last week provides an overview of the Seneca Nation and its strength in opposing legislation that would ban mail-order cigarette sales.


The Senecas control a cigarette “empire” that generates more than $1 billion a year, and subsequent to House and Senate bills to block the shipment of cigarettes, they began a campaign of “back-room lobbying” that for now has derailed the legislation while sustaining the tribe’s cigarette business.


“Isn’t that the way things go in the American system?” asked Richard Nephew, co-chairman of the Seneca Nation’s foreign relations committee. “It is something new for us to actively get involved in the American political process, [b]ut we are trying to learn what works in America, and I guess making political contributions is something that works.”


In November 2009, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed unanimously the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act — a bill that closes gaps in current federal laws regulating “remote” or “delivery” sales of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products. The bill enhances penalties for violations and provides law enforcement with new tools to combat the innovative methods being used by cigarette traffickers to distribute their products. NACS supports passage of the PACT Act and is a member of the Coalition to Stop Contraband Tobacco.


However, according to the New York Times, a handful of senators told party leaders privately that they were considering blocking the bill. The Senecas viewed this as a victory, which had suffered a setback five years ago when then-Attorney General Eliot Spitzer banned FedEx and UPS from delivering cigarettes, leading to a decline of roughly 60 percent of the Senecas’ sales volume.


Since then, the tribe has increased its lobbying presence in Washington, spending more than $300,000 last year in lobbying fees.


The lobbying effort has appeared to work, painting anti-mail order cigarette trade as a ploy by tobacco companies to scapegoat the Indians for teen smoking. Additionally, the Senecas warned that the ban could cost 1,000 jobs in the cigarette business.


By mid-December, the campaign had won two converts: Democratic New York Reps. Brian Higgins and Eric Massa, who have since urged Sens. Charles Schumer and Kristen Gillibrand to block a proposed Senate ban. “I do not believe that western New York can afford any more job losses,” Higgins wrote to the senators.


The Senecas have dedicated $1 million to fight New York officials whose proposals countered the tribe’s activities. In January, it approved an expenditure of $250,000 to oppose Sen. Gillibrand’s reelection campaign because she supports the PACT Act, according to the newspaper.


Meanwhile, not all New York legislators share the Senecas stance against the PACT Act. Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) is the lead sponsor of the PACT Act in the House, H.R. 1676, which overwhelmingly passed the House by a 397-11 vote on May 21, 2009.


“We must crack down on the illegal sale of tobacco, which gives terrorists and criminals the ability to raise more money,” said Weiner during a press conference in November. “Every day we delay is another day that states lose significant amounts of tax revenue and kids have easy access to tobacco products sold over the Internet. I urge my colleagues in the Senate to pass the bipartisan PACT Act.”