Those not resolving to quit cigarettes or tobacco in 2018 will be paying significantly more in Aspen to support their habits starting New Year’s Day.
Today marks the start of a new $3 per pack city tax and also is the day when the legal age to purchase tobacco products — including electronic cigarettes — increases from 18 to 21 in Aspen.
The changes are a result of two decisions in 2017: The City Council unanimously passed legislation to raise the legal purchasing age in June; Aspen’s electorate, by a near 3-to-1 margin, approved the new tax in the November election.
For retailers selling tobacco products in 2018, the new tax means they must pay the city a one-time license fee of $500. Fewer than a dozen Aspen retailers sell tobacco products.
“Unless there are folks hiding out in the woodworks, I think we will probably have seven, eight, maybe nine licenses,” said C.J. Oliver, the city’s Environmental Health Department director.
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