A BILL THAT WOULD “UP” THE TAX ON CIGARETTES BY A DOLLAR-50 SQUEAKS THROUGH THE SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE LATE TUESDAY. IT NOW HEADS TO THE SENATE FLOOR. THE MEASURE IS SPONSORED BY DEMOCRATIC SENATOR HOWIE MORALES.
MORALES TELLS US THE REVENUE FROM THE TAX … ABOUT 89 MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR … WOULD GO TO PUBLIC SCHOOL BUDGETS THAT ARE SUFFERING AND POISED FOR MORE CUTS. HE SAYS SCHOOLS HAVE ALREADY BEEN HIT HARD WITH CUTS AND ARE NOW BEING ASKED TO TAKE ANOTHER FIVE-TO-SEVEN PERCENT IN CUTS.
IF THE BILL … AND THE TAX HIKE … IS APPROVED, A PACK OF CIGARETTES WOULD GO FROM A-DOLLAR-66 TO 3-DOLLARS-16 CENTS. AND TAXES ON OTHER TOBACCO PRODUCTS WOULD BE RAISED. GOVERNOR MARTINEZ HAS VOWED TO VETO ANY TAX HIKES.
