Cigarette excise taxes.

• Position: TRENDS & TRANSITIONS - Brief article

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Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Smoking costs $193 billion annually ($96 billion in direct costs and $97 billion in lost productivity), according to a 2008 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Research shows that increasing cigarette taxes helps decrease consumption, especially among young people, and also raises revenue.

Tobacco taxes were increased more than any other tax in 2007. States generated an estimated $14.5 billion in tobacco tax revenue in 2008, in addition to the $7.3 billion in federal revenue from...