BUFFALO (AP) -- A New York appeals court has lifted a temporary order blocking the state from collecting taxes on cigarettes sold by Native American stores to non-Indian customers.
On Sept. 1, a state appellate judge in Rochester restored a restraining order that barred the state from collecting the $4.35-per-pack tax. But the court's five-judge panel, which took up the case last week, says Tuesday the state properly approved regulations for the levy.
A federal judge in Buffalo has already temporarily blocked tax collections from two Indian nations - the Senecas and Cayugas - and was holding a hearing Tuesday in that case.
State officials didn't immediately comment on the decision.
The Oneida Indian Nation issued a statement in response to the ruling, saying “The Oneida Nation will seek an injunction in federal court in the very near future. The Nation previously moved its cigarette manufacturing facility to the Nation's homelands, putting the sale of its Niagara’s and Bishop brands at SavOn beyond the reach of the State’s efforts to tax them. With respect to all other brands of cigarettes, the new law is aimed at distributors -- not the Oneida Nation -- and the Nation has ample existing inventory of those brands. As a result, our customers will not experience any change in any of our retail outlets for the foreseeable future. ”
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