LA House Refuses 72-Cent Per Pack Cigarette Tax Increase

BATON ROUGE (AP) — Lawmakers in the House may be willing to raise costs on cigarette smokers, but they balked at the size of the price hike pushed by senators.

         The House voted 81-15 Tuesday to reject the 72-cent per pack tax hike sought by the Senate, which would have raised the state's tax rate to $1.08 per pack. The House previously had agreed to a 32-cent increase.

         House members also objected to senators sweeping other tobacco products into the tax hike, like e-cigarettes and smokeless tobacco.

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         Rep. Harold Ritchie, D-Bogalusa, a long-time smoker, supported the price hikes, saying they would discourage smoking. Rep. Lance Harris, R-Alexandria, leader of the House Republicans, countered that lawmakers shouldn't support such a hefty tax hike on "working people," also predicting it would harm small businesses.

         A final version of the cigarette tax will be hammered out in a legislative conference committee, part of overall budget negotiations.

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