Tobacco Taxes

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Increasing tobacco taxes are proven to be an effective way to prevent children from smoking and help adults quit.  

We are working in states across the country and in Congress to save more lives by passing regular and significant tax increases on all tobacco products. And this doesn't just include cigarettes, but also other dangerous products like smokeless tobacco and cigars. 

State cigarette taxes range from a low of 17 cents per pack in Missouri to a high of $4.50 in Washington, D.C., with an average state tax of $1.91 per pack.

Latest Updates

May 1, 2023
New York

ALBANY, NY – MAY 1, 2023 – Earlier today New York State leaders released details on the agreed upon 2023-24 budget and will soon adopt each of the budget bills—the contents of which are a mixed bag at best in the fight against cancer. While the state made sound investments

April 28, 2023
Indiana

The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) is beyond disappointed that the legislature prioritized Big Tobacco’s profits over the health of Hoosiers.

March 11, 2023
New York

BUFFALO, NY –MARCH 11, 2023 – As budget discussions among state legislators pick up speed at the Capitol, Erie County religious, health and community leaders are set to rally alongside cancer patients and survivors on Monday, March 13. Following the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s (ACS CAN) release of

March 10, 2023
New York

BUFFALO, NY—MARCH 8, 2023— Utilizing data from the New York State Cancer Registry, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) released data showing the devastating impact that cancers linked to tobacco have on New Yorkers, specifically those living in Erie County: Between 2015-2019, 46,417 people on average

Tobacco Taxes Resources

The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) supports a comprehensive approach to tobacco control that includes significantly increasing excise taxes on all tobacco products to generate revenue, protect kids, and save lives. Significant tobacco tax increases are one of the most effective ways to prevent kids from starting to use tobacco and help adults quit.

The economic model developed jointly by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (TFK), the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), and Tobacconomics  (a program of the University of Illinois at Chicago) projects the increase in state revenues, public health benefits, and health care cost savings resulting from increases in state cigarette tax rates.  The projections are updated annually.  Calculations are based on economic modeling by Frank Chaloupka, Ph.D., and John Tauras, Ph.D., at the Institute for Health Research and Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and Jidong Huang, Ph.D., and Michael Pesko, Ph.D., at Georgia State University. 

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