Cigarette Tax Lacking Support Among Area State Legislators
February 1, 2019 at 11:09 p.m.
Cigarette Tax Lacking Support Among Area State Legislators
By Dan [email protected]
That came Friday when the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce hosted a Third House legislative update featuring three lawmakers: Sen. Ryan Mishler of District 9, Rep. Curt Nisly of District 22 and Rep. David Wolkins of District 18.
Blake, the program director for the Kosciusko County Tobacco Free Coalition, quizzed lawmakers about their support for a proposed cigarette tax that would hike it $2 per pack.
Mishler, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, has a significant role in tax and spending issues.
“What we have heard is that the House is not willing to act on it unless they know they have support in the Senate,” Blake said.
Blake asked Mishler how long he believes it will take before lawmakers are willing to raise the state’s cigarette tax.
Without giving specifics, Mishler said he thinks that will come when there is a need for more revenue to cover health care costs.
“The fear is the federal government will back off on subsidizing states for health care costs and some prefer to wait until that happens,” Mishler said.
Blake reminded lawmakers that states surrounding Indiana have higher cigarette taxes.
Proponents of a higher tax believe it’s a key to reducing the number of smokers.
“We’re really trying to push the Senate to get on board because ... we know the higher the prices, we know the lower our smoking rates will be,” she said.
Mishler said he prefers the idea of placing a tax on vaping, a type of smoking that has become popular with young people.
Mishler points out that the dangers of vaping are still unclear. He believes students are starting with vaping and moving on to other things.
“On kids, I think it’s having a reverse affect,” Mishler said.
Blake said she finds it’s “extremely frustrating” that lawmakers are resistant to raising the tax until the need for revenue is realized.
Wolkins said he’s “not really excited” about the $2 hike.
“The folks who are smokers are not your high-income people,” Wolkins said. “It affects a class of people that are struggling to get along right now.”
Wolkins said if there is growing support for a tax, he would seek to include an amendment that would widen the ban on smoking around public doors to a distance of 20 or 25 feet.
His willingness to expand the doorway ban, he said, is based on a woman he knows who has severe asthma.
The three lawmakers touched on a wide range of issues. Wolkins noted that more than 1,300 bills have been filed in the General Assembly this year.
All three Republican lawmakers also expressed a reluctance to support hate crimes legislation that would increase penalties for crimes against a long list of groups that include race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and religion.
Indiana is widely touted as one of just five states that have not adopted hate crimes legislation.
Nisly and Mishler both pointed out that Indiana judges already have the ability to consider aggravating circumstances when sentencing those convicted of violent crimes.
“If the list went away, I think a lot of our folks would support it,” Mishler said, noting his constituents overwhelmingly oppose hate crimes legislation.
“We’re all (part) of a list. We should all have the same protections,” Mishler said.
He admitted that a hate crimes bill without specific protections would be much like the existing circumstances.
Jill Boggs, representing the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau of Kosciusko County, suggested Indiana could be suffering from a stigma of not adopting a hate crimes bill.
Nisly and Mishler both pointed the state’s success in attracting business.
That came Friday when the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce hosted a Third House legislative update featuring three lawmakers: Sen. Ryan Mishler of District 9, Rep. Curt Nisly of District 22 and Rep. David Wolkins of District 18.
Blake, the program director for the Kosciusko County Tobacco Free Coalition, quizzed lawmakers about their support for a proposed cigarette tax that would hike it $2 per pack.
Mishler, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, has a significant role in tax and spending issues.
“What we have heard is that the House is not willing to act on it unless they know they have support in the Senate,” Blake said.
Blake asked Mishler how long he believes it will take before lawmakers are willing to raise the state’s cigarette tax.
Without giving specifics, Mishler said he thinks that will come when there is a need for more revenue to cover health care costs.
“The fear is the federal government will back off on subsidizing states for health care costs and some prefer to wait until that happens,” Mishler said.
Blake reminded lawmakers that states surrounding Indiana have higher cigarette taxes.
Proponents of a higher tax believe it’s a key to reducing the number of smokers.
“We’re really trying to push the Senate to get on board because ... we know the higher the prices, we know the lower our smoking rates will be,” she said.
Mishler said he prefers the idea of placing a tax on vaping, a type of smoking that has become popular with young people.
Mishler points out that the dangers of vaping are still unclear. He believes students are starting with vaping and moving on to other things.
“On kids, I think it’s having a reverse affect,” Mishler said.
Blake said she finds it’s “extremely frustrating” that lawmakers are resistant to raising the tax until the need for revenue is realized.
Wolkins said he’s “not really excited” about the $2 hike.
“The folks who are smokers are not your high-income people,” Wolkins said. “It affects a class of people that are struggling to get along right now.”
Wolkins said if there is growing support for a tax, he would seek to include an amendment that would widen the ban on smoking around public doors to a distance of 20 or 25 feet.
His willingness to expand the doorway ban, he said, is based on a woman he knows who has severe asthma.
The three lawmakers touched on a wide range of issues. Wolkins noted that more than 1,300 bills have been filed in the General Assembly this year.
All three Republican lawmakers also expressed a reluctance to support hate crimes legislation that would increase penalties for crimes against a long list of groups that include race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and religion.
Indiana is widely touted as one of just five states that have not adopted hate crimes legislation.
Nisly and Mishler both pointed out that Indiana judges already have the ability to consider aggravating circumstances when sentencing those convicted of violent crimes.
“If the list went away, I think a lot of our folks would support it,” Mishler said, noting his constituents overwhelmingly oppose hate crimes legislation.
“We’re all (part) of a list. We should all have the same protections,” Mishler said.
He admitted that a hate crimes bill without specific protections would be much like the existing circumstances.
Jill Boggs, representing the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau of Kosciusko County, suggested Indiana could be suffering from a stigma of not adopting a hate crimes bill.
Nisly and Mishler both pointed the state’s success in attracting business.
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