Table 1.
Small Cigar Legislation in Maryland
| May 22, 2007 | BCHD: Data Presentation. |
| August 15, 2007 | Meeting with BCHD Commissioner Dr. Sharfstein is held. Discussed findings from tobacco survey. Dr. Sharfstein decided to focus on small cigars. |
| August 31, 2007 | BCHD meeting: Little Cigars |
| October 9, 2007 | BCHD seeks input on small cigars (Baltimore Sun). Immediate Press Release is produced. BCHD releases background paper on small cigars. |
| October 15, 2007 | BCHD, the YO! Center, and The Johns Hopkins Center for Global Tobacco Control hold a forum at the Westside YO! Center to seek input on small cigars. |
| November 24, 2007 | Maryland Special Legislative Session: New cigarette tax extension to low price cigars is proposed. This legislation would have prohibited sales in packages of <5 and would have imposed the cigarette tax on certain small cigars. The small cigar legislation failed. |
| January 31, 2008 | Legislation is introduced in Maryland General Assembly to impose minimum packaging requirements on small cigars. Legislation unsuccessful. |
| May 28, 2008 | Mayor and Health Commissioner propose regulation to impose minimum packaging for small cigars in Baltimore City. City requested comments on the regulation. |
| July 9, 2008 | Maryland’s Attorney General submits memorandum saying Baltimore City is not preempted from imposing minimum packaging requirements on small cigars. |
| October 21, 2008 | Prince George’s County, MD, introduces a bill to impose minimum packaging requirements on small cigars. |
| November 18, 2008 | Small cigar bill is passed in Prince George’s County and the county is sued by the tobacco industry. |
| January 14, 2009 | Baltimore City finalizes the regulation to impose minimum packaging requirements on small cigars and introduces legislation similar to the regulation. Baltimore City is sued by the tobacco industry. |
| June 25, 2010 | City Circuit Court rules that the Baltimore City Health Commissioner does not have the authority to impose packaging requirements on small cigars. The city case is stayed pending the outcome of the county appeal. |
| July 12, 2010 | Prince George’s County cigar packaging ordinance is upheld in County Circuit Court. Tobacco industry appealed the court ruling. |
| March 4, 2011 | The Court of Appeals of Maryland heard the county case. The court has not yet issued an opinion. |