“Sin taxes” on products like cigarettes and booze have long been a popular way of procuring state revenues. Now, a national report released yesterday by a coalition of public health organizations revealed that raising Maryland's cigarette tax by $1 per pack would bring in $73 million in new annual revenue, and also help reduce smoking and saving lives.
The report comes as Maryland struggles with budget shortfalls and faces budget cuts across the board. The report details the revenue and health benefits to each state of a $1 cigarette tax increase.
For example, in Maryland, a $1 cigarette tax increase would:
• Prevent 34,400 kids from becoming smokers;
• Spur 16,000 current adult smokers to quit;
• Save 15,200 residents from premature, smoking-caused deaths; and
• Save $754.0 million in health care costs.
A nationwide poll released along with the report found that 67 percent of voters support a $1 tobacco tax increase, with backing from large majorities of Republicans (68 percent), Democrats (70 percent) and Independents (64 percent).
The poll found that voters far prefer raising the state tobacco tax to other options for addressing state budget deficits. While 60 percent favored increasing the tobacco tax for this purpose, more than 70 percent opposed every other option presented, including higher state income, gasoline and sales taxes and cuts to education, health care, transportation and law enforcement programs.
"This report shows that raising tobacco taxes is truly a win-win-win for Maryland. It is a budget win that will help protect vital programs like health care and education, a health win that will prevent kids from smoking and save lives, and a political win with the voters," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
The report - Tobacco Taxes: A Win-Win-Win for Cash-Strapped States - was 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.
Maryland's cigarette tax is currently $2.00 per pack, which ranks 11th in the nation. The national average is $1.34 per pack.
Tobacco use is the #1 cause of preventable death in the United States. In Maryland, tobacco use claims 6,800 lives and costs the state $1.96 billion in health care bills each year. Currently, 16.8 percent of the state's high school students smoke, and 23,600 kids try cigarettes for the first time each year.
The full report, including state-specific information and detailed poll results, can be found at here.
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(source: Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids / cover image: Microsoft Office Online)
Comments
I laugh at their so called "report". Those health societies rubber stamp anything popular with voters, but are bought by food companies trying to market "health" foods. These "vice taxes" are a farce and a cheap ineffective attempt to try and bring in more revenue while appeasing voters. These cigarette taxes are not only quite ineffective at getting smokers to stop, but they disproportionately affect poorer people, who don't have the same access to nicorette and other smoking cessation programs all the middle class suburbanites have. Even people who can afford to get cheaper smokes (i.e. those who make enough to own a car but don't want to quit) just go to Virginia anyway.
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