BEIJING - Chinese lawmakers began the review of a draft law on a tobacco leaf tax Monday, the law will replace a regulation that has been in place since 2006.

The draft law was given a first reading at a five-day bimonthly session of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, which opened Monday.

The law stipulates that a tax rate of 20 percent will be levied on tobacco leaf buyers, which is unchanged from the previous regulation.

China began collecting tax on tobacco leaf sales in 2006. Revenue from the tax totaled 109.7 billion yuan ($16.6 billion) between 2006 and 2016, up 12 percent year-on-year on average.