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#Obamacare's 10% tanning tax hits salon owners and customers, most of which are women: http://t.co/dJuaGAT9LE
May 14, 2013 11:01 AM
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Groups who advocated for the IRS to prepare tax returns sure look foolish these days: http://t.co/oKvpIofu7Y
May 13, 2013 06:30 PM
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"We don't need the federal government mandating additional taxes..." -@MarshaBlackburn on MFA: http://t.co/lAuLJtr5t3 #NoNetTax
May 13, 2013 06:00 PM
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Health insurers and businesses are already feeling the iron-clad grip of regulations in #Obamacare: http://t.co/J6dfnKqFYZ
May 13, 2013 05:30 PM
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Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell Signs Largest Tax Hike in Virginia History into Law http://t.co/Qd6KOFfaPv
May 13, 2013 03:46 PM
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Under #Obamacare, mothers have had a tougher time purchasing non-prescription, over-the-counter medicine: http://t.co/dJuaGAT9LE
May 13, 2013 02:01 PM
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9 out of 20 #Obamacare tax hikes have not even been implemented yet: http://t.co/opFkyf1guJ
May 13, 2013 01:30 PM
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.@GroverNorquist on MFA: "[The Senate] didn't ask all of the questions that needed to be asked": http://t.co/wXfkIR2Ca9 #NoNetTax
May 13, 2013 01:01 PM
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"When architects of #Obamacare are worried about it creating a trainwreck, you know something's gone terribly wrong": http://t.co/J6dfnKqFYZ
May 13, 2013 12:30 PM
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Conservative and Free Market Groups Applaud Move to Delay a Vote on Gina McCarthy: http://t.co/lNQYmJAB12 #EPA
May 13, 2013 12:02 PM
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Legislators Still Pushing for Tobacco Tax Hike
The year has not come to an end, yet lawmakers are already planning on how to take more of your money during 2010. Legislators in both Utah and Kansas are both looking for ways to fix their overspending problems and mistakenly think the way to do so is through a heavier tax burden. The target is a familiar one: tobacco taxes.
Last year in Kansas a $0.75 per pack increase failed to pass, but the idea still resonates with some legislators as well as Democrat Governor Mark Parkinson. The state already has some of the highest cigarette taxes in the region, currently $0.67 per pack. One study by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy estimates 19% of all cigarettes consumed in Kansas are bought from cheaper neighboring states, such as next door Missouri whose rates are $0.17 a pack. Any tax increases will lower the quantity bought in Kansas even further.
The same situation exists in Utah, where a massive $2.30 per pack increase was defeated year. House Speaker Dave Clark was recently quoted stating that of tax increases “all of that is still on the table…for me personally, tobacco is first on the list.” Thankfully, Utah Governor Gary Herbert’s preliminary budget recommendations wisely leave out any tax increases whatsoever.
What tobacco hike backers fail to consider is that a higher tobacco tax falls predominately on lower income individuals. The average smoker has an income just over $36,000, roughly 30 percent less than non-smokers. Any tax hikes in either state would only compound the harm done by the 156% increase at the federal level that was imposed earlier this year. Furthermore, excise tax increases never generate expected revenue, as people simply buy less of the product once it becomes more expensive. Tax hikes are not the solution to these states’ overspending problems; more responsible fiscal policy is.
For ATR’s press release about the Kansas proposal click here; For Utah, click here.
