If Approved, Would Tobacco Tax Actually Sway Smokers? There’s Precedence That It Works
In New York City, smoking rates declined from 22 percent of the local population to 15 percent in the decade after the tax — and the ban on smoking in restaurants and bars — was implemented.
KPCC:
Would California's Proposed Tobacco Tax Hike Reduce Smoking? Just Ask New Yorkers
California currently has one of the lowest cigarette taxes in the country: 87 cents per pack. If voters pass Proposition 56 in November, the tax would go up to $2.87 a pack. Backers of the measure, including the American Cancer Society and the American Lung Association, hope to hit people hard enough in the wallet that they quit smoking, or never start. Studies support the goal. For every 10 percent increase in the price of cigarettes, smoking goes down 4 percent, according to the 2014 Surgeon General’s Report. (Dembosky, 9/22)
Meanwhile, California Healthline looks at the murky details of where the money would be spent —
California Healthline:
Tobacco Tax Ballot Measure Would Fund Health Care For California’s Poor — But How?
At first blush, the tobacco tax measure on California’s November ballot looks pretty straightforward. Proposition 56 would raise the price of a pack of cigarettes by $2 and tax e-cigarettes for the first time. Proponents say the higher price would prevent kids from smoking and lower health care spending because people won’t suffer as much from tobacco-related illness. What’s not spelled out is how exactly money raised through the measure would be spent. (Bartolone, 9/23)