Master Settlement Agreement Compliance Tobacco Directories: A Tool to Track Tribally Manufactured Cigarettes

Introduction: Little is known about the scope of the tribally manufactured cigarette market. This study illuminates the topic by examining the Master Settlement Agreement Compliance Tobacco Directories, regularly updated documents that list the cigarette manufacturers and brand families that can be legally sold within participating states. Methods: In July 2014, the latest Tobacco Directories were identified for 43 states and the District of Columbia. Colorado archival tobacco directories were extracted, by month since 2003. Tribal manufacturers and brands were identified in the directories and mapped by state. Results: A total of 11 tribal manufacturers and 39 tribal cigarette brand families were identified in publicly available tobacco directories. Total unique brands were tallied by state, ranging from 1 to 24 unique brands. Historical data from Colorado showed that tribal manufacturers, as a percentage of all manufacturers, increased from 3.2% in 2003 to 20.6% by mid-2014. Discussion: Analysis of Tobacco Directories offers an innovative approach to better understand the tribally manufactured cigarette market. More research is needed to understand reporting and compliance to the Tobacco Directories by manufacturers and retailers, and their usefulness as a research tool to the tobacco control community. Implications: This study aims to make three contributions to the literature: (1) identify tribal tobacco manufacturers and brands in the Master Settlement Agreement Compliance documents; (2) highlight the presence and scope of the tribally manufactured cigarette brands across the United States; and (3) observe any upward or downward trends in tobacco brands and manufacturers since the directories' implementation.