Grand River Enterprises v. Boughton, No. 20-1044 (2d Cir. 2021)
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The Second Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of GRE's second amended complaint (SAC) challenging the Reconciliation Requirement of Conn. Gen. Stat. 4-28m(a)(3), which imposes certain reporting requirements upon GRE, a Canadian cigarette manufacturer, as a prerequisite to the sale of GRE's cigarette brands in Connecticut. GRE alleges that the Reconciliation Requirement violates its due process rights and the Supremacy and Commerce Clauses of the United States Constitution.
The court held that the Reconciliation Requirement has a rational relationship to the State's legitimate interests in collecting excise taxes and combatting cigarette smuggling that satisfies both federal and state due process requirements. The court also held that the State has violated neither the Commerce Clause nor the Supremacy Clause by imposing the Reconciliation Requirement on a Nonparticipating Manufacturer as a condition of permitting that manufacturer's brands to be sold within the State. Therefore, the court agreed with the district court that GRE's SAC fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.
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