70.158.050 - Reports, records -- Confidentiality, disclosures, voluntary waivers -- Escrow payments.

Reports, records — Confidentiality, disclosures, voluntary waivers — Escrow payments.

(1) In addition to the reporting requirements under *RCW 70.157.010(j) and the rules adopted thereunder, not later than twenty-five calendar days after the end of each calendar month, and more frequently if directed by the director, each wholesaler and distributor shall submit information the director requires to facilitate compliance with this chapter, including, but not limited to, a list by brand family of the total number of cigarettes, or, in the case of roll-your-own, the equivalent stick count for which the wholesaler or distributor affixed stamps during the previous calendar month or otherwise paid the tax due for the cigarettes. Each wholesaler and distributor shall maintain and make available to the director, all invoices and documentation of sales of all nonparticipating manufacturer cigarettes and any other information relied upon in reporting to the attorney general or the director for a period of five years.

     (2) Information or records required to be furnished to the department, the board, or the attorney general are confidential and shall not be disclosed. However, the director and the board are authorized to disclose to the attorney general any information received under this chapter and requested by the attorney general for purposes of determining compliance with and enforcing the provisions of this chapter. The director, the board, and the attorney general may share with each other the information received under this chapter, and may share information with other federal, state, or local agencies, including without limitation the board, only for purposes of enforcement of this chapter, RCW 70.157.020, or corresponding laws of other states. If a tobacco product manufacturer that is required to establish a qualified escrow fund under RCW 70.157.020 disputes the attorney general's determination of what that manufacturer needs to place into escrow, and the attorney general determines that the dispute can likely be resolved by disclosing reports from the relevant distributors and wholesalers indicating the sales or purchases of the tobacco manufacturer's products, then the attorney general shall request voluntary waivers of confidentiality so that the reports may be disclosed to the tobacco product manufacturer to help resolve the dispute. If the waivers are provided, then the director and the attorney general are authorized to disclose the waived confidential information collected on the sales or purchases of cigarettes to the tobacco product manufacturer. However, before the attorney general or the director discloses the waived confidential information, the tobacco product manufacturer must provide to the attorney general all records relating to its sales or purchases of cigarettes in dispute. The information provided to a tobacco product manufacturer pursuant to this subsection (2) shall be limited to brands or products of that manufacturer only, may be used only for the limited purpose of determining the appropriate escrow deposit, and may not be disclosed by the tobacco product manufacturer.

     (3) The attorney general may require at any time from the nonparticipating manufacturer proof, from the financial institution in which the manufacturer has established a qualified escrow fund for the purpose of compliance with RCW 70.157.020(b)(1), of the amount of money in the fund, exclusive of interest, the amount and date of each deposit to the fund, and the amount and date of each withdrawal from the fund.

     (4) In addition to the information required to be submitted pursuant to RCW 70.158.030, this section, and chapters 82.24 and 82.26 RCW, the director, the board, or the attorney general may require a wholesaler, distributor, or tobacco product manufacturer to submit any additional information including, but not limited to, samples of the packaging or labeling of each brand family, as is necessary to enable the attorney general to determine whether a tobacco product manufacturer is in compliance with this chapter. If the director, the board, or the attorney general makes a request for information pursuant to this subsection (4), the tobacco product manufacturer, distributor, or wholesaler shall comply promptly.

     (5) A nonparticipating manufacturer that either: (a) Has not previously made escrow payments to the state of Washington pursuant to RCW 70.157.020; or (b) has not actually made any escrow payments for more than one year, shall make the required escrow deposits in quarterly installments during the first year in which the sales covered by the deposits are made or in the first year in which the payments are made. The director or the attorney general may require production of information sufficient to enable the attorney general to determine the adequacy of the amount of the installment deposit.

[2003 c 25 § 5.]

Notes: *Reviser's note: For rules and reporting requirements adopted pursuant to RCW 70.157.010, see WAC 458-20-264.