Panel proposes Kentucky cigarette tax hike
Tax could climb from 60 cents to $1 per pack
New provisions of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act will take effect Tuesday, June 22.
Photographer: Getty Images
Posted: 11/20/2012
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By: Associated Press
FRANKFORT, Ky. - Smokers would pay more for their cigarettes under a proposal endorsed Monday by a panel appointed by Gov. Steve Beshear.
The Blue Ribbon Commission on Tax Reform gave an initial OK to increasing the cigarette tax to $1 a pack from the current 60 cents.
The news wasn't welcomed at Bo's Smoke Shop in Lawrenceburg, where the price for a pack of the most popular Marlboro cigarettes would increase to $5 a pack.
"I don't think the customers are going to like it," warned cashier Terri Taylor. "They're already complaining about how high cigarettes are."
The proposed cigarette tax hike, if approved by lawmakers, would be the second since 2009 when it was doubled from 30 cents a pack.
Cigarette tax increases typically provide only a short-term revenue increase followed by a decline because people tend to giving up the habit rather than pay the higher prices.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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