North Carolina - 50 cents increase in cigarette tax back in the news..

July 9, 2009 - North Carolina (NC) Governor with a budget gap currently at $4.7 billion (and growing). Perdue has suggested several new taxes, including a sales tax hike of 1%, which would raise the state sales tax to 7.75%, which is not too far from the highest sales tax in the country at 8.25% in California. Other taxes would include an additional temporary tax on wealthy individuals in what the state calls an “emergency surcharge”, an increase of fifty cents per pack on cigarettes, and an additional tax on alcoholic beverages. Perdue says that all the new taxes would add up to $1.6 billion in revenues for the state and claims that all taxes are temporary and that they will return to the current rates, or even decrease once the economy stabilizes.

The NC legislature did not pass a new state budget by the end of the fiscal year, June 30, 2009 but lawmakers did approve a temporary spending bill to keep government operating. July 15, 2009 is the deadline for coming up with budget.

Reference: North Carolinians to see tax hikeby Danielle Cuave, Raleigh Libertarian Examiner, 7/9/2009 (1:31pm).

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