January 16, 2015 Patrick Lagreid Regulations,  Taxes

Kansas Governor Calls for Tobacco Tax Increase to Close Budget Gap

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has made national headlines for his plans to lead the state on a “march to zero” income taxes, but during Thursday’s State of the State address and in the budget proposal released Friday morning, he revealed that he will attempt to fill the $648 million gap in the upcoming fiscal year that has been created by many of his cuts by raising taxes on tobacco and alcohol.

Brownback has proposed an increase on the tax rate of tobacco products such as premium cigars from 10% to 25% of the wholesale price. That would mean that a cigar that has a MSRP of $9.50 would go from costing about $10.45 to $11.88, and that is before sales tax is added.

The governor has also asked for an increase on the cigarette tax from $0.79 per pack to $2.29 and an increase on the liquor tax from 8% to 12%.

The consumption tax increases on tobacco and alcohol are part of a number of proposals that the governor submitted, including softening existing tax rate reductions and freezing reductions if the state doesn’t have growth in future years.

Kansas OTP Tax Sam Brownback Taxes
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Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for Major League Baseball, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.

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