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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, July 02, 2002

Cigarettes Hit $7 a Pack in New York City

City smokers in New York began paying more than $7 a pack for many major cigarette brands Monday as New York began collecting a new tax expected to bring an additional $111 million over the next year.


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City smokers in New York began paying more than $7 a pack for many major cigarette brands Monday as New York began collecting a new tax expected to bring an additional $111 million over the next year.

"In New York City, tobacco is the No. 1 cause of preventable death," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said as he signed the new tax into law Sunday.

The law boosted the city's per-pack tax from 8 cents to $1.50, an almost 20-fold increase. Coupled with an April increase in the state cigarette tax to $1.50 a pack, the levy means smokers in New York City will now pay almost the double the national average for cigarettes.

Critics said consumers would avoid the taxes by buying cigarettes in other places, such as the Internet, nearby states, Indian reservations and the underground market.

The tax followed months of often-tense negotiations with the City Council over how to close a historically large $5 billion budget gap. Besides the new cigarette tax, new fees were approved for cell phones and parking tickets for the budget year that began Monday.

New Jersey's state cigarette tax also went up Monday. The increase of 70 cents per pack more than doubled the state's take to $1.50, the same as New York state and behind only Washington state.

The measure, which went into effect with a new state budget, is expected to raise $275 million. Lawmakers said they hope the higher costs of cigarettes will also encourage more smokers to quit.

Other states also looked to cigarettes to help bring in new revenue this year. Among the highest rates, Vermont rose its per-pack tax by 49 cents Monday, to 93 cents, and Illinois added 40 cents a pack, going to 98 cents.

In Pennsylvania, a 69-cent-per-pack tax increase will take effect July 15, more than tripling the current tax of 31 cents.




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