Jump to full article: cbs 5 (San Francisco, CA), 2009-06-29
Intro: A proposal by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom to levy a fee on cigarettes to help pay for the city's cleanup of discarded butts received backing from a Board of Supervisors committee Monday.
The mayor's office, however, Monday lowered the originally proposed 33-cent-per-pack fee to 20 cents.
Newsom praised the decision by the Budget and Finance Committee, which is expected to forward the item to the full board next week.
"All litter creates unnecessary costs for the city and its taxpayers," he said in a prepared statement, adding, "Cigarette butts are a big part of the problem."
The cleanup also removes toxins that can leach from the cigarette butts into groundwater or the bay and ocean, he said.
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All litter creates unnecessary costs for the city and its taxpayers. Cigarette butts are a big part of the problem.
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, whose plan to levy a unique fee on cigarettes to help pay for the city's cleanup of discarded butts received backing from a Board of Supervisors committee Monday.
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