tobacco taxes

A new nationwide poll finds that two-thirds of U.S. voters support a $1 increase in tobacco taxes per pack. The tax could raise more than $9.1 billion in new annual revenue for states, says the report released by a coalition of public health organizations claims.

Just as pressure differentials spawn tornadoes, price differentials create a vortex of demand. The widely different excise taxes put on cigarettes from state to state has turned millions of smokers into smugglers, and smugglers into rich smugglers. Can you blame a smoker in New York, who is paying...