Benefits of Raising Cigarette Taxes by $1

The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids just released a report that identifies the many benefits Indiana would experience if the state increased our tobacco tax by $1. Some of the benefits include $230.1 million in new revenue, 63,600 youth prevented from smoking and 30,900 lives saved from premature death. In this time of budgetary crisis this could be a good angle for the state to consider when thinking of new revenue streams.

Go here for the full report: http://tobaccofreekids.org/reports/state_tax_report/downloads/states/Indiana.pdf

Currently our cigarette tax is only 99.5 cents, which ranks us 29th in the nation. The current national average is $1.34 a 34.5 cent difference.