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At the same time they bitch about second hand smoke from tobacco, the Government states this:

Michigan Revenue Declining; Sharpest Monthly Decline In 25 Years
03/11/09
09:29:49 am, Categories: State News, Taxation
Michigan Revenue Declining; Sharpest Monthly Decline In 25 Years
Michigan residents bought fewer Michigan lottery tickets, cigarettes, clothes, restaurant meals and household goods, as they saw the stock market plummet and the economic outlook darken.

The sharp pullback in consumer spending sent sales tax receipts downward 18 percent in February, or more than $100 million. It will force Gov. Jennifer Granholm and lawmakers to cut the budget more, agree on tax increases or use more of the federal economic stimulus money to balance the state's books.

It was the steepest monthly decline in 25 years.

Overall revenue declines total $200 million from forecasts made just seven weeks ago.

Since income tax receipts from paycheck withholding were pretty flat in February, economists say concerned consumers may be putting away their credit cards and spending less.

“The big reason revenues are tanking is that consumers are negative and they're saving their money,” Senate Fiscal Agency economist David Zin said Wednesday. “We thought consumers would ratchet up the savings and they've done so even more than we thought.”

Also down were tax receipts on specific forms of discretionary spending, according to the agency's new revenue report. Tobacco tax receipts were down 6.7 percent and casino wagering taxes were down 7 percent. Michigan Lottery ticket sales dropped nearly 19 percent. One factor that explains some of the decline from a year ago was that February 2008 provided a 29th day of sales.

Tax collections from the sale of real estate are down 42 percent from a year ago. While the focus of the state's economic woe is the auto sector, sales tax receipts from car sales actually climbed 15 percent last month.

For the full article, see Peter Luke, “Michigan Lottery sales, taxes on cigarettes and casino gambling plummet; Gov. Jennifer Granholm says revenue decline is ‘breathtaking’”, MLive, March 11, 2009.