News
Poll: Most Nebraska voters support increasing cigarette tax
Friday, October 18, 2013
Lincoln Journal Star
A majority of Nebraska voters favor increasing the state's cigarette tax and using the money to provide property tax relief and smoking-cessation programs, according to a poll released Friday.
“Nebraskans have made it clear they are ready for a tobacco tax increase,” said David Holmquist of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, which paid for the poll.
The poll of 500 likely voters in Nebraska shows strong bi-partisan support, with 68 percent supporting and only 29 percent opposing a proposal to increase the state tobacco tax in order to reduce property taxes and fund smoking cessation programs.
“A tobacco tax increase would have many immediate positive impacts, from the reduced health costs from smokers who choose to quit and youth who are priced out of the market to the ways that increased revenues could be used to fund smoking cessation efforts or offset property taxes,” Holmquist said
Support for the tax increase is consistent across all subgroups, including smokers. Support remains high when voters are told that the state tobacco tax could be increased by $1 per pack, which if adopted would make Nebraska, currently a low tobacco tax state, slightly higher than Iowa’s current tax.
Nebraska's cigarette tax is 64 cents a pack, which ranks 38th nationally. Iowa's is $1.36, which ranks 26th.
The highest cigarette tax is New York's $4.35 a pack. The lowest is Missouri's 17 cents.
