Excise Taxes

State

Smokers brace for tax hike: Legislature passes 200% tax increase (Guam)
A 200% tobacco tax increase passed the Guam Legislature in late January. When Bill 150 becomes law, Guam’s cigarette tax will rise to $3.00, making the territory’s cigarette tax the second-highest in the U.S. Read more here. Click here to read the text of the bill. Update: Cigarette tax signed into law Guam Governor Felix Camacho signed the law in early February, and the tax will go into effect in April. A significant portion of the revenue from this tax will fund the Guam Cancer Trust Fund to support cancer screenings, treatment, and support services.  Find out more here, or listen to an audio clip of a Guam senator explaining why the excise tax is an important public health win.

Rex: Smokers can stop teacher furloughs (SC)
South Carolina’s Superintendent of Education Jim Rex announced a plan to raise the state tax on cigarettes by $1.27 per pack to help the state’s financial crisis and support education. The first 57 cents per pack, estimated to bring in $147 million, would go toward healthcare costs and smoking prevention programs. The additional funds would go to education to prevent teacher furloughs until educational funding returns to historic levels, after which the money would go toward healthcare. Legislators approved raising the tax by 57 cents in a previous session, but the measure was vetoed by the Governor. South Carolina currently has the lowest cigarette tax in the country at 7 cents per pack. Read more here.

Utah Legislature: Cigarette tax hike clears House committee (UT)
Utah’s House Health and Human Services Committee has approved a bill that would raise the tax for a pack of cigarettes to $1.70. Opponents of the bill say that Utah has very few smokers and they are more likely to buy products online or in neighboring states than to quit smoking if a tax increase went into effect. Those supporting the bill say that the tax would need to increase to $8 per pack to bring in enough tax revenue to fully pay for health care associated with diseases related to smoking. Click here to read more.

Gregoire unveils tax plan (WA)
Washington State Governor Chris Gregoire has sent state legislatures a budget proposal that includes tax increases that will raise $759 million in new revenues to aid education, health care, and other vulnerable programs. She has proposed a $1 cigarette tax increase, which would bring the state tax rate to $3.03 per pack. Taxes would also be raised on optional items such as bottled water, carbonated beverages, candy, and gum. Opponents of the proposal believe it is an unwise suggestion during a economic downturn, and could be a threat to local businesses.  Read more here.

top

National

Cigarette tax increases would raise billions for cash-strapped states, while reducing smoking and winning voter approval
A new report, “Tobacco Taxes: A Win-Win-Win for Cash-Strapped States”, has been released, showing how increasing state cigarette taxes amounts to a win for state budgets, a political win for legislators due to voter support, and a public health win. If every state increased its cigarette tax by $1 per pack, states would raise $9 billion in revenue, reduce smoking, and save lives. The report was released alongside national poll results indicating that regardless of party lines, the majority of American voters (67%) support a $1 per pack tax increase, and that they would prefer a tobacco tax to other tax increases for addressing state budget problems. The report was jointly released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Click here to read a press release, or click here to view a webpage detailing the report’s findings. Click here to access a toolkit with related resources for the media, researchers, and grassroots advocates.

top

Back to Table of Contents