Cigarette tax will protect children and save lives

May 17, 2005

Spectrum/John Stein

In study after study, increases in tobacco prices have been shown to decrease tobacco use, particularly among youth.

The most recent estimates are that every 10 percent increase in the real price of cigarettes would reduce the prevalence of smoking among adults by 4 percent, with an even greater reduction among youth. Alaska's youth are being targeted by tobacco companies. Helping keep youth from starting to smoke or use spit tobacco just makes sense.

The National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine states that "the single most direct and reliable method for reducing consumption is to increase the price of tobacco products."

The U.S. Surgeon General weighs in with "raising tobacco excise taxes is widely regarded as one of the most effective tobacco prevention and control strategies."

Even the tobacco industry admits that "A high cigarette price, more than any other attribute, has the most dramatic impact on the share of the quitting population. Price is the driving force in quitting." (Philip Morris) The facts are clear - tobacco taxes reduce smoking and prevent initiation among youth.

Toll of tobacco

The tobacco industry is almost completely reliant on teenagers to replace the more than 400,000 American adults who die each year from tobacco-related illnesses. The statistics are too familiar by now - 90 percent of tobacco users started before they turned 18 years old. Three thousand children start smoking each day, and one-third of them will die prematurely from a tobacco-related disease. The Mat-Su Borough can reduce this terrible toll and protect our community's kids by standing up to big tobacco and raising tobacco taxes.

For decades the tobacco industry has targeted the poor. As a result, low-income individuals and families face a disproportionate burden of tobacco-related disease, resulting in higher rates of addiction and death.

And now, the tobacco industry and its allies argue that increased tobacco taxes burden the poor. The truth is, higher prices will result in a higher percentage of low-income children and adults breaking their addiction - or avoiding starting the deadly habit in the first place. (For anyone thinking about quitting, Alaska has its own Tobacco Quitline available free 24 hours a day at 1-888-842-QUIT.)

Tobacco taxes good for fiscal health, too

The tobacco tax will bring in far more new revenue than is lost through reductions in the amount of tobacco sold. The borough estimates the tax will generate about $4.5 million annually. These funds also help offset the economic cost of tobacco use, which, in Alaska, is more than $260 million annually for health-care costs and lost productivity.

Research also shows that anti-tax arguments made by the tobacco industry regarding tax avoidance and smuggling are misleading and of minor concern. While some will always try to get around the system, most cigarettes are bought one pack at a time. Moreover, a state tax stamp is now required on all cigarettes in Alaska and the major credit card companies have announced they will no longer process payments to Internet tobacco vendors. These efforts will further reduce whatever limited tax evasion may exist.

Tobacco tax is a win-win-win

The Mat-Su Borough Assembly has a "win-win-win" opportunity. The proposed tobacco tax will prevent needless addiction and premature death of many Alaskans alive today, with the added benefits of offsetting the economic costs caused by tobacco use, diversifying borough revenues and providing property tax relief.

Former Wasilla mayor John Stein is executive director of Kids Are People Inc.