From: Daily Finance
by Rich Smith
The conclusion from a recently released report on cigarette taxes and cigarette smuggling from the Tax Foundation may sound obvious. The Washington, D.C.-based think tank found that when states impose high excise taxes on cigarettes, smokers tend to avoid buying cigarettes there. Instead, they buy them in low-tax states — smuggling their smoky contraband across state lines.
No shocker there, right? However, what may surprise you is the foundation’s revelation of the size of the phenomenon.
The States That Bum the Most Out-of-State Smokes
At $4.35 a pack, New York levies the highest excise tax on cigarettes in the land. It has nearly tripled the size of its excise since 2006 and now boasts an excise tax almost precisely three times the national average ($1.46 a pack).
The result: the majority of cigarettes smoked in New York are contraband. According to the study’s data (which goes through 2012, the most recent year for which complete data are available), 56.9 percent of New York’s cigarettes were smuggled into the state, dodging New York excise taxes.
