Many RYO retailers are hoping to clear existing inventory before April 1 to avoid the Floor Tax which marks all current stock immediately taxable and due under the S-CHIP provisions.  Some experts believe the RYO industry’s future is questionable and do not foresee many current companies surviving this onslaught of record high tax legislation.   RYO consumers are up in smoke about this and looking for cheaper alternatives while breaking their piggy banks, trying to stock up before the March 30th deadline.  It’s ironic that one of the resources the less fortunate are using to cope with the economic downturn is evidently being put to rest.  Legitimate US businesses are being destroyed to help support the healthcare of children of fairly well-to-do families, some of whom earn over $80,000.00 annually and even those of illegal aliens.

When asked how this will affect smoking behaviors, some RYO consumers relayed that their seeds are already ordered and plan on growing their own tobaccos.  A new hobby might spring for some, but land, skill and time constraints will make this a select few.   While GYO, or Grow Your Own, the smallest and most intensive of the tobacco hobbies, might work for the luckiest and most proficient, few RYOers have the resources nor space available for growing to be a real alternative.

Big Tobacco might expect an increase in market share when frustrated hobbyists and those who can afford to,  turn back to commercially manufactured cigarettes.   While the RYO consumer experienced a record breaking increase in federal tax, commercial cigarettes, pipes, cigars, chew and even snuff tobacco users  experienced only a curiously modest increase.   Insiders claim the cigar lobby threw RYO under the bus but many enthusiasts blame Big Tobacco itself.  Whichever the case, those who cannot afford to pay double or more in retail costs; smokers on fixed income, unemployed, out of work, handicapped, retired and otherwise broke smokers might need to finally give the old habit the boot.   For many of these people however, the prohibitive costs of cessation aids will make quitting an arduous, long and uncomfortable process.

Chart illustrating the inequities of the new S-CHIP bill as it’s applied to various tobacco products. Some experts say the current revision of the S-CHIP bill will likely destroy the RYO industry in the US and leave the poorest class of tobacco users in the cold. Ironic that the bill heralded to fund children’s healthcare for Americans earning up to $83K per annum is being placed squarely on the shoulder’s of America’s poorest citizens.  As anyone can plainly see, these figures are a bit askew against RYO by about 2,000%!

SCHIP Tobacco Tax Rate Increases | RYO Revolution