Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 3, March 22, 2024
A. Pursuant to
South Carolina Code Section
11-48-30,
tobacco product manufacturers who seek to certify their cigarette brands for
sale in South Carolina must complete and submit no later than the thirtieth day
of April each year the "Tobacco Product Manufacturer Certificate of Compliance"
made available on the South Carolina Office of the Attorney General
website.
B. In exercising the
discretion granted by Section
11-48-30
when considering an application submitted for certification, the Attorney
General may consider the following:
1. Whether
the entity tendering a certification request is a tobacco product
manufacturer;
2. Whether the
tobacco product manufacturer is the tobacco product manufacturer, as defined by
Section
11-47-20(i),
of the cigarette brand listed on the certification application;
3. Whether the brand family sought to be
certified by the tobacco product manufacturer is also manufactured by another
entity; and whether the tobacco product manufacturer has exclusive rights to
the trademark for the brand family. Whether any other tobacco product
manufacturer also manufactures cigarettes within the same brand
family
4. Completeness, or lack
thereof, of the certification request made by the tobacco product
manufacturer;
5. Whether the
tobacco product manufacturer has provided all requested documents supporting
its certification request;
6.
Whether the certification request is based on misrepresentation, falsification
of facts, false information, nondisclosure, or concealment of facts;
7. Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
is in full compliance with all provisions of local, state and federal
law;
8. Whether the tobacco product
manufacturer, predecessor of the tobacco product manufacturer, or previous
manufacturer of the brand is the subject of litigation, including but not
limited to violations of any South Carolina statute, regulation, or other law,
including, but not limited to, violations of Sections
11-47-10,
et seq., through 11-48-10, et seq.;
9. Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
has failed to fully fund a qualified escrow fund approved by the Attorney
General in a timely and thorough manner;
10. Whether all final judgments and
penalties, including interest, costs and attorney fees thereon, in favor of the
State of South Carolina, for violation of any South Carolina statute,
regulation or other law, including but not limited to violations of Sections
11-47-10,
et seq., through 11-48-10, et seq., have been fully satisfied for the brand
family, or tobacco product manufacturer;
11. Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
has failed to pay any judgment obtained in any jurisdiction, including any
civil penalty stemming from any jurisdiction's escrow deposit laws, or whether
the tobacco product manufacturer is a defendant in a pending lawsuit brought by
another state for failing to sufficiently fund an escrow account pursuant to
that state's escrow laws; or whether the tobacco product manufacturer has been
removed from another state's tobacco directory;
12. Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
has corrected deficiencies in its certification request or criteria set forth
herein in a timely and thorough manner;
13. Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
has complied in a timely and thorough manner with any request by the Attorney
General for additional information or documentation supporting its
certification request or the criteria set forth herein;
14. Whether the tobacco product manufacturer
is owned, either all or in part, by a person or entity with a current or prior
interest in any other tobacco product manufacturer that is, or has been, not in
compliance with any South Carolina statute, regulation, or other law, including
but not limited to Sections
11-47-10,
et seq., through 11-48-10, et seq., or is the subject of litigation for the
same;
15. Whether the tobacco
product manufacturer is managed or operated by a person with a current or prior
interest in any other tobacco product manufacturer that is, or has been, not in
compliance with any South Carolina statute, regulation, or other law, including
but not limited to Sections
11-47-10,
et seq., to 11-48-10, et seq., or is the subject of litigation for the
same;
16. Whether the tobacco
product manufacturer is owned, either all or in part, by a person or entity,
that has failed to pay any judgment obtained in any jurisdiction, including any
civil penalty stemming from any jurisdiction's escrow deposit laws;
and
17. Any other facts or
circumstances the Attorney General determines are relevant.
C. Each Tobacco Product
Manufacturer certified on the directory will be required to report its sales of
cigarettes into South Carolina for each quarter, utilizing the form provided by
the Attorney General on the Attorney General website.