Jump to full article: AP, 2004-02-28
Author: KATHY BARKS HOFFMAN / The Associated Press
Intro: Gov. Jennifer Granholm's proposals to raise the tax on a pack of cigarettes to $2 and increase by about 50 cents the state tax on a $10 bottle of liquor are favored by more than half of Michigan voters, a new poll shows.
In a poll of 600 likely voters taken Sunday through Wednesday by Lansing-based EPIC/MRA . . .
Sixty percent favor raising the cigarette tax by 75 cents a pack, while 36 percent oppose it and 4 percent are undecided. The higher tax would raise an estimated $295 million, with $30 million going for smoking cessation and chronic disease programs and the rest helping the state pay for Medicaid, the health care program for low-income residents. . . .
Critics have warned that boosting liquor and cigarette taxes would encourage Michigan residents to stock up elsewhere, such as Indian reservations or stores in neighboring states.
There was little difference among men and women in support for the higher cigarette tax. But more women than men supported the liquor tax increase, with 74 percent of women favoring it compared with 61 percent of men.
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