Excise Taxes

National

Senate panel backs youth health plan
The Senate Finance Committee voted 17-4 to expand the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). At a cost of $5 billion, SCHIP currently provides health insurance to six million children of low-income working families. In approving an expansion of the program, The Senate committee has agreed to invest an additional $35 billion in the program over the next five years, by raising the federal cigarette tax from 39 cents to one dollar a pack. Taxes on cigars would also increase, up to ten dollars for some of the most expensive brands. To read more about the bipartisan agreement, click here or click here to read about President Bush’s threat to veto the expansion. Click here to view the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids’ response, written by Executive Director William V. Corr.

Connecticut cigarette tax increase is a victory for kids and taxpayers
At the end of June, the state of Connecticut became the eighth state to increase its cigarette tax to $2.00 or more per pack. More specifically, state legislators voted to increase the tax from 49 cents to $2.00 per pack to help fund education and a variety of healthcare programs. Click here to view the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids’ statement, written by Executive Director William V. Corr.

Illinois: Senate committees OK cigarette tax, health plan
Illinois Senate committees have approved legislation that would raise the cigarette tax and also lower the overall cost of the governor’s health plan. In an effort to reach a consensus on the state budget, lawmakers approved a 75-cent increase to the cigarette tax, which would raise the tax to $1.73. This increase is predicted to generate about $328 million a year, which would be spent on roads, schools and other construction projects. That being said, Gov. Blagojevich does not believe that there are sufficient votes in the Senate to pass even this watered down version of his health plan. Click here to read more.

New report shows Wisconsin can save lives and taxpayer money by increasing cigarette tax
A recent report released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids demonstrates that increasing Wisconsin’s cigarette tax by $1.25 a pack would result in a number of positive public health outcomes. Some of the benefits that can be expected by an increase in the cigarette tax include a 20.9% reduction in youth smoking, 42,500 current adult smokers being able to quit successfully, and the generation of $252 million in new revenue. While the Senate has approved a budget that would include the tax hike and an increase in the amount of money spent on tobacco prevention, the Assembly recently approved a budget that excludes the tax increase and drastically cuts tobacco prevention spending. To read more, click here.

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