Report: Arizona one of worst states for cigarette smuggling
Jan 22, 2017, 11:42 AM
FILE - In this June 22, 2012, file photo, a smoker snuffs out a cigarette at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif. California's lopsided U.S. Senate is nearing a historic end and voters are pondering a long list of ballot questions that could legalize marijuana, end the death penalty and slap cigarette smokers with a $2-a-pack tax increase. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)
(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)
Arizona is one of the worst states in the nation for cigarette smuggling, according to one report.
The report from The Tax Foundation in Washington has Arizona ranked second in terms of smuggled cigarette consumption in 2014, with almost half of the cigarettes used in the state being smuggled in.
That 49.6 percent number trails only New York’s 55.6 percent rate of cigarettes consumed in their state being smuggled in.
Compared to their 32.1 percent number in 2006, that’s an over 17 percent rise for Arizona in an eight-year span.
The reasoning behind this according to the report is a significant rise in taxes on cigarettes. Over the time of that 17 percent rise, the tax on cigarettes has gone up 69 percent, increasing from 82 cents to $2.
While that 69 percent increase may seem severe, it’s smaller compared to Minnesota and New York, who have had 111 and 190 percent raises, respectively.
