SD man says new law forced him to close smoke shop

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YANKTON (AP) — A Yankton man’s dream of owning a roll-your-own cigarette shop has gone up in smoke.

John Muilenburg is closing his doors after less than nine months because of a new state law that classifies the business as a cigarette manufacturer and taxes customers more than $15 per box.

Mullies Cigarette Shop has a machine that allows customers to roll loose-leaf tobacco into cigarettes. The cost had been about half that of retail stores. Muilenburg says the change makes the cost of retail cigarettes about the same as roll-your-own smokes, or about $47 a carton.

Muilenburg said he still owes money on the $35,000 roll-your-own machine. He says he’s devastated that state lawmakers “just took our livelihood away.”

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