Cigarette tax revenue plunges as smokers buy outside New York

[Suzanimal]

schadenfreude


Albany has really blown it — tax revenues from cigarettes are up in smoke.

New York state cigarette tax collections have plunged by about $400 million over the past five years, according to figures and estimates from the office of New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

And New York has also lost $1.3 billion in uncollected state cigarette taxes each year from alternative sales, according to a separate study.

The state is taxing far fewer packs, as smokers evade taxed packs, shop across state lines or buy smokes from Native American merchants to avoid punitive NY taxes. A typical pack in New York costs $10.60 or more, including the nation’s highest state excise tax, $4.35.

In Gotham, smokers are slapped with an extra $1.50 per pack on top of the state tax. (On top of that, there’s federal excise tax of $1.01, and an 8 percent sales tax of almost 80 cents, using our example.)

Not surprisingly, say experts, sales of taxed cigs in New York are off by 54 percent in the past decade, which is also cutting into the profits of local store owners peddling smokes. In that same period, about 19 percent of New Yorkers stopped smoking, a pace well below the huge sales dip.

“The Germans call it ‘schadenfreude’ when you take pleasure from another person’s misfortune,” noted Dan Mitchell, a tax expert at the Washington DC-based Cato Institute, commenting on the New York smoking tax fiasco.

“Normally, I would think people who feel this way have a character flaw.

“But not in this case,” he added. “I confess that I get a certain joy from this story because politicians are being punished for their greed. I like the fact that they have less money to waste.”

http://nypost.com/2015/12/27/cigarette-tax-revenue-plunges-as-smokers-buy-outside-new-york/?ref=yfp

[Spikender]

And New York has also lost $1.3 billion in uncollected state cigarette taxes each year from alternative sales, according to a separate study.

"Lost", as if they owned that money in the first place.

[Anti Federalist]

http://cdn.head-fi.org/4/40/4088bccb_simpsons_nelson_haha1-1.jpeg

[TheNewYorker]

I just buy my cigs from the Indians. On the reservation, cigs were like $2.00 a pack. At the gas station, $12.00 a pack. Well, that was back when I still smoked.

What NY actually did was make it so the Indians couldn't sell national brands, a few years ago. They some how found a loophole where they could tax the Indians. So the only thing the Indians could now sell are their own brand. Which taste like garbage.

Now I vape. Whatever, call me a loser but I'm saving a lot of money. When I was buying cigs and paying the state, I was spending about $300/month on cigs. When I was paying the Indians, I was spending about $40/month. Now with vaping, I'm spending about $80/year.

[Suzanimal]

I just buy my cigs from the Indians. On the reservation, cigs were like $2.00 a pack. At the gas station, $12.00 a pack. Well, that was back when I still smoked.

What NY actually did was make it so the Indians couldn't sell national brands, a few years ago. They some how found a loophole where they could tax the Indians. So the only thing the Indians could now sell are their own brand. Which taste like garbage.

Now I vape. Whatever, call me a loser but I'm saving a lot of money. When I was buying cigs and paying the state, I was spending about $300/month on cigs. When I was paying the Indians, I was spending about $40/month. Now with vaping, I'm spending about $80/year.

When we go to Buffalo, my husbands family puts in a cigarette order. The back of my minivan is usually packed with smokes. O_o

[luctor-et-emergo]

You can make a law against the free market but it won't stop people. Might slow them a bit...

[tod evans]

You can make a law against the free market but it won't stop people. Might slow them a bit...

How much of the tobacco hysteria has made it to your side of the pond?

[luctor-et-emergo]

How much of the tobacco hysteria has made it to your side of the pond?

Not a whole lot so far, apart from mandatory health warnings and yearly increasing prices. I do believe the EU is now going to mandate that a certain percentage of a package is devoted to health warnings. Not entirely sure.


We had the same thing that happened here happen with alcohol taxes. I'd say these taxes are successful in what they were stated to do; lower consumption. The government however doesn't care about such petty things as intent. They're just whining about lower revenues.

Same with traffic tickets. They say these are to make the roads safer. Then people get less fines over a year, government gets less revenue, you'd say; less tickets = safer roads... But no, the tickets have been going up 15% annually over the past couple of years. I think they've at least doubled in the past 10 years. Number of tickets has been going down the same time. In fact, they admit they have to raise the fines because they ALREADY SPENT THE MONEY. So yeah.

But no tobacco hysteria here. :p

[tod evans]

Not a whole lot so far, apart from mandatory health warnings and yearly increasing prices. I do believe the EU is now going to mandate that a certain percentage of a package is devoted to health warnings. Not entirely sure.


We had the same thing that happened here happen with alcohol taxes. I'd say these taxes are successful in what they were stated to do; lower consumption. The government however doesn't care about such petty things as intent. They're just whining about lower revenues.

Same with traffic tickets. They say these are to make the roads safer. Then people get less fines over a year, government gets less revenue, you'd say; less tickets = safer roads... But no, the tickets have been going up 15% annually over the past couple of years. I think they've at least doubled in the past 10 years. Number of tickets has been going down the same time. In fact, they admit they have to raise the fines because they ALREADY SPENT THE MONEY. So yeah.

But no tobacco hysteria here. :p

I'm for bludgeoning the whiners over here about the head and shoulders until they're unable to complain.....:mad:

[LibertyEagle]

I just buy my cigs from the Indians. On the reservation, cigs were like $2.00 a pack. At the gas station, $12.00 a pack. Well, that was back when I still smoked.

What NY actually did was make it so the Indians couldn't sell national brands, a few years ago. They some how found a loophole where they could tax the Indians. So the only thing the Indians could now sell are their own brand. Which taste like garbage.

Now I vape. Whatever, call me a loser but I'm saving a lot of money. When I was buying cigs and paying the state, I was spending about $300/month on cigs. When I was paying the Indians, I was spending about $40/month. Now with vaping, I'm spending about $80/year.

Yeah, you and me both. Ain't it great? :)

[jmdrake]

Ironically Eric Garner was strangled to death after resisting arrest for selling "illegal" cigarettes in New York.

[DamianTV]

When we go to Buffalo, my husbands family puts in a cigarette order. The back of my minivan is usually packed with smokes. O_o

Reported! Terrorizer! Tax Fraud!

(kidding...)

[GunnyFreedom]

Ironically Eric Garner was strangled to death after resisting arrest for selling "illegal" cigarettes in New York.

War on loosies.