State Cigarette Excise Tax Increases—United States, 2010–2011

March 30, 2012 / Vol. 61 / No. 12

MMWR Highlights

State Cigarette Excise Tax Changes: 2010 and 2011

• Six states increased cigarette excise taxes in 2010: Hawaii, New Mexico, New York, South Carolina, Utah, and Washington.
  • Increases for 2010 ranged from $0.40 per pack in Hawaii to $1.60 per pack in New York.
• Three states increased cigarette excise taxes in 2011: Connecticut, Hawaii and Vermont.
  • Those increases ranged from $0.20 per pack in Hawaii to $0.40 per pack in Connecticut.
  • New Hampshire decreased its cigarette excise tax by $0.10 per pack in 2011.

Mean Cigarette Excise Taxes

• The national mean cigarette excise tax increased from $1.337 per pack in 2009 to $1.441 in 2010 and $1.457 in 2011.
• Among major tobacco-growing states (GA, KY, NC, SC, TN and VA) the mean cigarette excise tax increased from $0.402 in 2009 to $0.485 in 2011.
• Among all other states, the mean cigarette excise tax increased from $1.462 in 2009 to $1.587 in 2011.

Specific State Tax Rates

• New York increased its cigarette excise tax from $2.75 in 2010 to $4.35 in 2010. With this increase, New York became the first and only state to have a cigarette excise tax of at least $4.00 per pack.
• South Carolina increased its cigarette excise tax in 2010 for the first time since 1977. With this increase from $0.07 to $0.57 per pack, South Carolina no longer has the lowest cigarette excise tax in the United States.
• Missouri's cigarette excise tax is the lowest in the United States at $0.17 per pack.
• California, Missouri, and North Dakota remain the only states that have not increased their state cigarette excise tax since 2000.
  • Missouri and North Dakota have not raised the state cigarette excise tax ($0.17 and $0.44 per pack, respectively) since 1993
  • California has not raised its cigarette excise tax ($0.87 per pack) since 1998.