Smokers steaming over tax hike
I think they should leave smokers alone. Thats a big tax increase, the veteran smoker of 25 years said. I may try to quit here in a little bit because of the money, he said.
The tax hike was signed into law in May to help offset cuts in local school property taxes. The increase which will be added to the existing 41-cent-per-pack tax is the first in Texas since 1991.
Texas was among the states with the lowest cigarette tax. But the $1.41 tax customers will now pay ranks Texas among the top third. New Jersey levies a nation-high $2.58 state tax per pack.
Supporters of the tax from Texas Gov. Rick Perry to the American Cancer Society think they have a good idea of what will happen: The state will bankroll hundreds of millions in revenue, and tens of thousands of pack-a-day smokers will decide that the extra $365 a year is the last incentive they need to finally kick the habit.
