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Jump to full article: Wilmington (DE) News Journal, 2009-04-05
Intro: Most people think cigarette smoking is a scourge and higher taxes will help stamp it out. That's true and, to a great degree, a noble thought.
However, for state legislators, and now Congress, increasing the tax on cigarettes is more an easy way to raise money than a public health issue. The temptation is an easy one: to plug whatever budget gap exists, raise the tax on cigarettes and argue it's for the public good. Delaware did it in 2007 and Gov. Markell is proposing it for this year. . . .
Since the federal tax just went up 62 cents a pack, even more smokers can be expected to stop. That will bring every state's point of diminishing returns even closer.
Translation: Cigarette taxes are short-term revenue solutions. If the taxes were really about the health of smoker, the tax would be a lot higher.
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