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Dick, I'll concede that it may be premature to assess the final impact
on tax collections. However, if you're interested, The Cato
Institution has done extensive analysis on the impact of tobacco tax,
revenue collections and black market cigarette sales.. With that I
show my libertarian bias. <br>
<br>
As for Montana law, I'm not sure how it's circumvented, but cigarettes
on the S-K reservation are significantly less than they are off the
reservation. Perhaps that has been a consequence of the reported
stockpiling as well. There's no way for me to know.<br>
<br>
Having said that, you did not address my (libertarian) concern about
the regressive nature of the tax. <br>
<br>
db<br>
<br>
Dick Schmidt wrote:<br>
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<div>David,</div>
<div> </div>
<div>From the March 17, 2005 issue of the Missoulian :</div>
<div> </div>
<div>"At the moment, tobacco tax revenue is down, not up. That's
likely due at least in part to stockpiling in advance of the Jan. 1
effective date for the tax increase. But it's quite possibly going to
take several months or longer to get a good read on the amount of money
the higher tax is going to produce." </div>
<div> </div>
<div>I guess I can't understand why tribal sales are a problem as
your law says that the wholesalers have to do the collecting of the
tax. When Washington raised their tax a lot of their people now come to
Idaho to buy cigarettes and there are probably people from Montana also
coming to Idaho for their cigarettes. If Idaho raised their cigarettes
$1.00 a pack it should be a win-win situation for everyone. There may
be loop-holes in the laws but <u>smart </u>legislators would plug
them!</div>
<div>I understand also that your higher taxes on cigarettes was a
voter approved tax passed in November.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Dick Schmidt<br>
</div>
<div> </div>
<div> </div>
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<div
style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none;">-----
Original Message ----- </div>
<div
style="background: rgb(228, 228, 228) none repeat scroll 0%; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none;"><b>From:</b>
<a title="dave@davebudge.com" href="mailto:dave@davebudge.com">David
M. Budge</a> </div>
<div
style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none;"><b>To:</b>
<a title="dickschmidt@moscow.com"
href="mailto:dickschmidt@moscow.com">Dick Schmidt</a> </div>
<div
style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none;"><b>Cc:</b>
<a title="vision2020@moscow.com" href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">vision2020@moscow.com</a>
</div>
<div
style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none;"><b>Sent:</b>
Friday, April 01, 2005 1:36 AM</div>
<div
style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none;"><b>Subject:</b>
Re: [Vision2020] Idaho Is Poorly Managed by a bunch of Ignorant
Republican Farmers</div>
<div><br>
</div>
Dick Schmidt wrote:<br>
<br>
"They had perfect opportunity to fund education this past week with
their CF (those who have been in the military know what CF means)
handling of the renewal of the cigarette tax. Idaho has the lowest
cigarette tax in the area and they should have added $1.00 on to the
tax for a total of $1.57 a pack for cigarettes and used the money for
education but no, these people are just too damn stupid!"<br>
<br>
Well Dick, Montana just instituted such a tax voted in by referendum
and guess what? Cigarette tax revenues are down $1 million for the
first two months of 2005 over 2004 before the tax was levied. This is
due in no small measure to the fact that, in both Montana and Idaho, we
have an abundance if tribal reservations where state taxes are not
collected.<br>
<br>
As well, the tobacco tax is highly regressive in that the great
preponderance of people who smoke are in the lower income brackets. So
taxing the "poor" seems as though it would make getting an education
more difficult for those who need it to lift them up to a higher
economic strata.<br>
<br>
I'll grant you that "these people are just too damn stupid!", but there
is nothing new in that. As I say, never underestimate the stupidity of
your government.<br>
<br>
db</blockquote>
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