Cigarette Tax Proposal a Likely Failure
You may not know it from headlines like:
Big guns back tobacco tax plan in midst of Ky. budget crunch
or
Survey: Cigarette-tax hike backed, Majority of senators in Ky. open to idea
but a $0.70 cigarette tax increase is very unlikely to pass even the Kentucky House. While Courier-Journal headline writers seem to have their heads in the clouds, the reporter includes this quote from the House A&R Chairman:
They have their work cut out for them. Even a powerful supporter of the 70-cent increase said it could be a long shot.
"I tend to think 70 cents would not pass the House, but I'm not sure of that," said Rep. Harry Moberly, the Richmond Democrat who is chairman of the House budget committee and supports the tax increase.
This mirrors earlier comments by Representative Jimmie Lee:
“I don’t think realistically you could pass a 70-cent tax increase,” said Rep. Jimmie Lee, D-Elizabethtown, noting that he would vote for it.
“Those legislators that live close to a border state may find 25 cents more palatable because it would keep Kentucky cigarette taxes lower than most states,” Lee said. “I think he has a lot of selling to do.”
Where it seems unlikely in the House, it seems likely dead in the Senate, where 20+ legislators expressed their disinclination towards the tax increase.
