Section 16-223 - Direct sales and shipping of cigarettes ordered by mail or other means.
§ 16-223. Direct sales and shipping of cigarettes ordered by mail or other means.
(a) Applicability of section.- This section applies to a person who is engaged in the business of selling or distributing cigarettes.
(b) Prohibition.-
(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, a person covered under this section may not:
(i) sell or ship cigarettes, ordered or purchased by mail or through a computer network, telephonic network, or other electronic network by a consumer or other unlicensed recipient, directly to a consumer or other unlicensed recipient in this State; or
(ii) cause cigarettes, ordered or purchased by mail or through a computer network, telephonic network, or other electronic network by a consumer or other unlicensed recipient, to be shipped directly to a consumer or other unlicensed recipient in this State.
(2) A licensed retailer may deliver no more than two cartons of cigarettes directly to a consumer if the delivery is made by the licensed retailer or an employee of the licensed retailer.
(c) Penalty.-
(1) A licensee who sells or ships cigarettes in violation of this section or causes cigarettes to be shipped in violation of this section is:
(i) subject to discipline by the Comptroller under § 16-210 of this subtitle; and
(ii) guilty of a felony and, on conviction, is subject to a fine not exceeding $50 for each carton of cigarettes transported or imprisonment not exceeding 2 years or both.
(2) A person other than a licensee who sells or ships cigarettes in violation of this section or causes cigarettes to be shipped in violation of this section is guilty of a felony and, on conviction, is subject to a fine not exceeding $50 for each carton of cigarettes transported or imprisonment not exceeding 2 years or both.
[2005, ch. 490.]