Posted on 04/29/2002 3:24:55 AM PDT by kattracks
You gotta love it.
Thanks for posting those figures.
That's more than $88 billion - or about $80 million a day - being sucked out of the private sector (on the backs of 20% of the population) and into government coffers. Do reputable economists really believe that the private sector can keep taking that kind of hit and still recover -- much less grow?
In 46 of the 50 states they can not even go this route until at least 2023 because of the Master Settlement Agreement.
The annual payments of these monies are based solely upon the number of cigarettes sold in each of the 46 states. what legislature is going to outlaw a product mandated to pay them above and beyond the already outrageous excise taxes placed upon them?
There was thread a couple of weeks ago about some of the states "cashing in" their settlement money for immediate payoffs to balance this year's budgets. Kind of like lottery winners opting for immediate cash settlements rather than take the 20 year installments.
Either way it just went to show how ridiculous all this tobacco settlement BS really was and more importantly just what is was really all about. Money for liberal pet projects to buy votes to maintain their power.
What's the old joke about the ending of a play under various regimes?
"...everbody die. ....everybody die. ...everbody die, but they die happy!"
Of course they don't. But the majority of economists are leftists who would love to see the private sector crash and burn, leaving everything in the hands of the state. They don't like free enterprise. In fact, they don't like freedom. And they particularly detest the USA. They've done everything they can to hobble us and still haven't succeeded, but they will forever try.
My most recent carton of smokes cost me $9.53 including taxes in Kentucky. I'm not at the desperation point yet, but I'll keep you in mind when I am.
That would get you about 2 packs in California.
The last carton my husband cranked out for me cost $6.12 and he did it in less than an hour.
Just joking with you, just joking.
The more folks that make their own or buy from the Reservation stores, the less money the grubmint and the antis have to use to demonize the smokers themselves!!!!
About 82% of what consumers pay for a pack of cigarettes ends up going to the government in taxes and other payments rather than for the cigarettes.
Based on the most recent available data, the average total price for a pack of cigarettes in the U.S. is now $3.73. Only about 8 cents of that goes to the farmer for the tobacco. About 28 cents goes to the manufacturer in profits. (Remember, this is the part that doesn't change by state.)
But about 84 cents goes for special Federal, state and local excise taxes imposed on cigarettes. Another 16 cents goes to pay regular state sales taxes. In addition, another 45 cents of the total goes in payments to the states and their lawyers as compensation for their supposed costs resulting from smoking related illnesses. The states are primarily just spending that money now in their general budgets.
And that is not all. The cigarette manufacturer pays about 76 cents on taxes assessed at the corporate level, including corporate income taxes, property taxes, payroll taxes, etc. Then there are the taxes paid by the wholesalers, the retailers, the warehouses, and the taxes embodied in the products the manufacturer uses to make the cigarettes. This consumes another 87 cents of the money the consumer pays for the cigarette pack.
Altogether then about 82% of the $3.73 the consumer pays for the pack of cigarettes ends up flowing down in taxes or other payments to the government.
There's also a state-by-state breakdown of tobacco taxes at the bottom of this page. Anyone else thinking what I'm thinking? These guys may be our best hope of getting national help from an effective organization.
Keep me posted.......... make my day again and again please.
Under the terms of the Master $ettlement Agreement, any new manufacturer will place the same amount of money in escrow as the Big 4 (5?) had to pay to the states. Kinda puts a crimp in free enterprise, don't it?
BTW, some of the reservations have been bought off by the grubmint. The State says, 'hey, you collect the taxes and KEEP them, then your prices won't be lower than ours and we can still sell ours at inflated prices.' What a sweet deal, but it sure does seem like there should be a rule somewhere against it.
So guv started stopping cars leaving the rv and fining people which led to a loss for the indians.
Well, well, seems the state highway was running thru rv property and the indians said they were gonna close it. Guv backed off.
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