Groups of American Indians from across the state are in New York City to defend their right to sell tax-free cigarettes. A Senate committee hearing Tuesday addressed confusion in the law over taxes and the tribes. Smoke shops on New York reservations now sell hundreds of millions of packs of cigarettes each year. Technically, state law requires taxes to be paid on any cigarettes that aren’t for the personal use of tribe members. The rules have never been enforced in deference to Indian sovereignty.
