Opinion: Tobacco Tax Hike Would Increase Smuggling

Patrick Fleenor, chief economist of the Tax Foundation, asserts that SB 600, which would increase California's tobacco tax by $1.50 per pack, would result in "a torrent of additional cigarette smuggling and other unintended consequences." The Senate Health Committee approved the measure on June 17.

• "California Focus: Bonanza for Cigarette Smugglers" (Fleenor, Orange County Register, 7/30).