United States
California recently became the second state in the US to raise the legal age to purchase tobacco products to 21. Gov. Jerry Brown signed a series of measures in May that sought to further reduce smoking rates, including a new law that limited the use of electronic cigarettes in public spaces. California’s efforts to control tobacco use come months after Hawaii raised its minimum age to 21 in January.
The Institute of Medicine estimated that raising the minimum purchasing age to 21 nationwide could decrease tobacco use among adults by 12%. But some health advocates said states should go further and raise taxes on tobacco products. This November, Californians will get their chance to do so when they vote on a ballot initiative that would increase the state’s cigarette tax from US$0.87 per pack to US$2.00.
Some say the tax could be very effective, but others disagree.
“We found that a 10% tax increase would reduce smoking by around 0.5%,” said Robert Kaestner, a University of Illinois at Chicago economics professor who has studied state tobacco taxes. “People are already paying a lot of money,” he added. “People who love smoking, they have a strong preference. Everybody knows smoking is terrible for you, yet people still smoke.”
California’s Budget and Policy Center estimates the proposed tobacco tax will raise more than a billion dollars a year. That money will be distributed to Medicaid programs and tobacco prevention services.