New York Gov. George Pataki has ordered state officials not to collect taxes on cigarettes sold to non-Indians on Indian reservations in the state, the New York Times reported March 21.

The state is hoping to avoid a confrontation with the tribes, some of which staged fiery protests in 1997 over another state tax issue, closing several interstate highways.

"Our goal has always been to solve this matter through cooperation instead of confrontation," said Kevin Quinn, a spokesman for Pataki. 

Tribal officials and business owners say the tax law infringes upon their sovereignty. But state Democrats are criticizing Pataki for failing to collect the $1.50-per-pack tax, and Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has threatened to revoke the licenses of cigarette wholesalers who sell packs to Indian tribes without a state tax stamp.

"You can't announce to the world that a law will simply be ignored and not enforced," Spitzer said.