SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- A $1-per-pack increase in Illinois’ cigarette tax, combined with extensive program cuts and a major reduction in Medicaid payments to medical providers, anchor Gov. Pat Quinn’s plan to close a $2.7 billion gap in the program, according to a report in the State Journal Register.
Quinn outlined his proposal Thursday, after a working group of state lawmakers failed to come up with a plan that covers the entire $2.7 billion.
Quinn wants to raise the state cigarette tax by $1 per pack. Coupled with federal matching funds, that would produce $675 million for Medicaid, according to the report.
Quinn said the state’s 96-cents-per-pack tax on cigarettes is 32nd in the country. Raising the tax, he said, will encourage people either to quit smoking or not start.
Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon, said he doesn’t think the cigarette tax hike will pass the General Assembly.
“The governor is waving the white flag and saying we’re really not going to change the system much and we’re going to go ahead and raise taxes,” Righter said.
If the $2.7 billion hole isn’t plugged one way or another, Quinn said, the difference will have to come out of other state spending, like schools or public safety.
“Members of the General Assembly may not be wildly excited about this plan, but it is necessary,” he said. “I think the folks who are saying no to that ought to rethink their position.”
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