The Wisdom of Id on Cig Taxes

The Clarion Ledger notes tobacco taxes did much better in August than July. In August they came in above expectations by 3.52% and in July they missed expectations by 17.99% which according to the Ledger translates to "meeting expectations for the most part." If an 18% deficit is "meeting expectatoins for the most part" then Governor Haley Barbour's 5% budget cut announced yesterday should be no big deal.

Over the first two months of this new budget year, tobacco taxes have failed to meet projections by an average of 7.46%. We'll see how things turn out.


New Jersey actually saw a net loss of tobacco revenue when it increased tobacco taxes last year. While that won't happen in Mississippi, we think we will see less revenue than some expected. In other words, Mississippi is keeping the Golden Goose alive, but it isn't laying eggs as frequently as the farmers would like.