State cigarette tax second lowest in nation

Only South Carolina levies a lower cigarette tax than Missouri.

Five of the six major tobacco-producing states have increased cigarette tax levies since July 2002, but Missouri has not increased its rate since 1993, according to the Missouri Budget Project, a nonprofit, statewide fiscal-analysis group.

Missouri Project officials contend that a 30-cent increase to the tax would bring Missouri’s rate to about half of the national average and would result in about $165 million in increased state revenue.

“Funds of this magnitude would be a real tonic for a hard-pressed budget,” said Tom Kruckemeyer, Missouri Budget Project’s director of fiscal policy and chief economist, in a news release. “It is notable that with most state governments dealing with major budget shortfalls, even the large tobacco-growing states have hiked their cigarette taxes in recent years.”