Maine has added its name to the growing list of states increasing taxes on tobacco products.
Maine Gov. Janet Mills signed the budget bill on June 23, which raised the state’s cigarette tax from $2 per pack to $3.50 per pack. The increase will begin Jan. 5 and marks the first increase in the state’s cigarette tax in two decades.
“This was a difficult budget to put together,” said Mills in a statement. “Our economy is strong, but our revenues are leveling-off, and while prior legislatures have made many important and worthwhile investments, we have to consider what we can sustain in this budget cycle.”
The tax hike impacts other tobacco products, including cigars and smokeless tobacco. And under the $11.3 billion state budget, Maine’s adult-use marijuana tax will increase from 10% to 14%, according to cannabis news outlet MJBizDaily.
However, proponents of the tax increase argue the higher prices will deter users, especially the youth.
Matthew Wellington, associate director of Maine Public Health Association said in a statement that, “raising the tobacco tax is an evidence-based policy that reduces youth tobacco use and helps ensure that the next generation of Maine youth grows up free from tobacco addiction and harm.”
Maine isn’t the only state looking to fill budget deficits on the East Coast. Lawmakers in Rhode Island realized that nicotine pouches are not in the taxation definition of other tobacco products (OTP) and as a result will be taxed at the OTP rate of 80%.
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