RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Lawmakers are aiming to impose harsher penalties on cigarette traffickers in Virginia, where officials say low excise taxes have made it an attractive base for smugglers.

Virginia is home to cigarette giant Philip Morris USA and the nation’s most prolific cigarette factory — as well as the country’s second-lowest excise tax at $3 a carton. That means smugglers can easily buy hundreds or even thousands of cartons and resell them at a discount in states with higher taxes.

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