Apr 7, 2008 8:24 pm US/Eastern
Cigarette Tax Hike Gaining Momentum On Beacon Hill
BOSTON (AP) ―
Senate President Therese Murray said Monday that a proposed $1 tax hike on a pack of cigarettes has strong support in the Senate -- and Gov. Deval Patrick said he expects to support it if it reaches his desk.
Murray said the extra revenue will help cover the higher than expected costs of Massachusetts' landmark health care law.
Murray's comments came on the eve of an expected debate in the Massachusetts House on the cigarette tax and a package of business tax loophole closings that critics say amount to a tax hike on businesses.
House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi proposed the cigarette tax increase and supports the tax loophole closings, which are tied to a gradual reduction in the state's business tax rate.
Patrick said he wants to see the cigarette tax legislation before deciding whether to sign it, but indicated he would support it. Patrick initially proposed a variation of the corporate tax loophole plan later adopted by DiMasi.
"I think there is a lot of public health wisdom in a cigarette tax," Patrick said Monday after meeting with DiMasi and Murray. "I think in some form I expect to support it, but I want to see what form it takes when it reaches my desk."
The cost of the health care law is soaring in part because more people than expected have signed up for subsidized care through the state.
Murray said the extra tax money raised from a cigarette tax hike would help ease the financial pressure on the state from the success of the health care initiative.
"With the cigarette tax money we should be OK," she said.
Not everyone is backing the tax increases.
Republicans are planning a news conference Tuesday to oppose both the cigarette tax increase and the business loophole closings, which they say taken together amount to a $500 million tax hike.
The last big tax package was approved in 2002, the year before former Gov. Mitt Romney took office when former House Speaker Tom Finneran helped shepherd through a $1 billion tax package at the height of the last fiscal crisis.
Murray, DiMasi and Patrick are all Democrats.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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