323.505

(1) A tax is hereby imposed upon the distribution of all tobacco products in this state. The tax imposed by this section is intended to be a direct tax on the consumer, for which payment upon distribution is required to achieve convenience and facility in the collection and administration of the tax. The tax shall be imposed on a distributor at the time the distributor distributes tobacco products.
(2) The tax imposed under this section shall be imposed at the rate of:
(a) Sixty-five percent of the wholesale sales price of cigars, but not to exceed 50 cents per cigar;
(b) One dollar and seventy-eight cents per ounce based on the net weight determined by the manufacturer, in the case of moist snuff, except that the minimum tax under this paragraph is $2.14 per retail container; or
(c) Sixty-five percent of the wholesale sales price of all tobacco products that are not cigars or moist snuff.
(3) For reporting periods beginning on or after July 1, 2022, the rates of tax applicable to moist snuff under subsection (2)(b) of this section shall be adjusted for each biennium according to the cost-of-living adjustment for the calendar year. The Department of Revenue shall recompute the rates for each biennium by adding to the rates in subsection (2)(b) of this section the product obtained by multiplying the rates in subsection (2)(b) of this section by a factor that is equal to 0.25 multiplied by the percentage (if any) by which the monthly averaged U.S. City Average Consumer Price Index for the 12 consecutive months ending August 31 of the prior calendar year exceeds the monthly averaged U.S. City Average Consumer Price Index for the 12 consecutive months ending August 31, 2020.
(4) If the tax imposed under this section does not equal an amount calculable to a whole cent, the tax shall be equal to the next higher whole cent. However, the amount remitted to the Department of Revenue by the taxpayer for each quarter shall be equal only to 98.5 percent of the total taxes due and payable by the taxpayer for the quarter.
(5) No tobacco product shall be subject to the tax if the base product or other intermediate form thereof has previously been taxed under this section.