Cigarette News: Democrats want to stick it to the poor - Cigarette tax hurts the poor, but it's justified

I once hauled furniture for a living on what would be considered poverty wages.One of the enjoyable moments of the day was a cigarette break. The smoke was delicious and the nicotine a welcome buzz.And then I got educated, got money, quit smoking, became a liberal and supported higher cigarette taxes on my former co-workers.Democrats are all about taxing the rich, whereas Republicans prefer their taxes a bit more regressive. But when it comes to cigarettes, they reverse course. More...

Cigarette News: Mississippi cigarette tax bill dies

JACKSON, Mississippi - Senate Public Health Committee Chairman Hob Bryan allowed a cigarette tax bill to die in his committee Tuesday, saying he supports the measure but it couldn't be implemented this year.
Tuesday was the deadline for committees to take up bills originating in the opposite chamber. The cigarette tax bill was introduced in the House and passed there before it moved to the Senate.
The bill would have increased the state's cigarette excise tax by $1 per pack. Mississippi now has one of the lowest cigarette excise tax rates in the nation, at 18 cents a pack. More -

Cigarette News: Overzealous Officialdom - Man ended up in court – For dropping cigarette ash on a pavement

UK - Stunned smoker Daniel Slaney ended up in court – for dropping cigarette ash on a pavement.The computer programmer, 37, was having a fag as he walked to work.But two council wardens accused him of throwing his cigarette end away and handed him a £40 fine for littering in Sandiacre, near Nottingham. More...

Cigarette News: Tobacco Control Bill Advancing in Congress

Washington DC - A House subcommittee on Tuesday approved a bill that would grant the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the authority to regulate tobacco products.Anti-smoking activists hailed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act as a way of protecting the nation's health and curbing smoking among children. But at least one tobacco company objects to giving the FDA "overly broad authority." Full Story -

Cigarette News: Gov. Beshear: Hike cigarette tax 70 cents

FRANKFORT, Kentucky - Acknowledging that his casino gambling proposal faces long odds, Gov. Steve Beshear switched course Thursday and proposed a cigarette tax increase that would leverage $800 million over two years to bolster his bare-bones budget.
Beshear reversed his previous no-new-taxes position and advocated raising the state's 30-cents-a-pack cigarette tax to $1 a pack. Full Story -

Cigarette News: Gov. Patrick says he "could sign" proposed $1 cigarette tax hike

BOSTON, Massachusetts - Gov. Deval Patrick says he could sign a proposed cigarette tax hike if it reaches his desk.
House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi is pushing the $1 per pack increase in the state's cigarette tax as Massachusetts struggles with a projected $1.3 billion state revenue gap.
The proposal would increase the tax on each pack of cigarettes to $2.51. Full Story -

Cigarette News: Cigarette tax hike likely

Kentucky: According to Kentucky lawmakers, an increase in Kentucky's cigarette tax is a likely result stemming from the state's poor financial condition. A proposal before the House by Rep. David Watkins, would raise the cigarette tax, currently 30 cents per pack, up to $1 per pack. That would raise about $205 million in additional tax revenue, the Legislative Research Commission has estimated. Kentucky's current tax is among the lowest in the nation. Full Story

Cigarette News: Group opposes cigarette tax boost

COLUMBIA, South Carolina - An anti-tax group that's taken money from tobacco companies is spending about $15,000 on postcards and radio advertisements that criticize efforts to increase cigarette taxes and use the money to help employers offer health insurance.
The S.C. Association of Taxpayers sent 10,000 mailings last week, mostly to Republicans, to head off a tax credit proposal to expand health insurance coverage.
The spending also includes up to $4,000 on radio ads. Full Story