Todd endorses big jump in cigarette tax

This from H-L:

University of Kentucky President Lee T. Todd Jr. on Wednesday offered the strongest pitch from higher education officials for a significant increase in the cigarette tax.

While university presidents, including Todd, have refrained in the past from publicly endorsing tax increases of any sort, Todd said a sharp increase is necessary not only for budget purposes but especially for health benefits.

"I have been willing to come out and support the cigarette tax. I've always wanted to do it for health reasons, now it's tied directly to education," Todd said at the Lexington-Fayette government center during Gov. Steve Beshear's latest public event about his plan to plug a $456.1 million state budget shortfall....

House leaders considering additional tax increases

This from PolWatchers:

Democratic leaders in the House will likely propose a legislative "package" that would bring in "several hundred million dollars" to enhance Gov. Steve Beshear's austere budget proposal, said House budget committee chairman Harry Moberly.

Moberly, D-Richmond, declined to offer any specifics, saying "we've got a lot of work to do before we talk about anything."

The proposal will include some "outside the box" proposals that go beyond an increase in the cigarette tax, Moberly said in an interview Tuesday. He still expects the House to approve a cigarette tax increase of 30 cents per pack or less, which would bring in about $100 million annually.

Some of the revenue-generating measures under consideration would be traditional tax hikes, but others wouldn't, Moberly said...

Increased T-word utterances in Frankfort

Push back against possible cuts to education appears to be the motivation as "taxes," a word one did not hear spoken aloud until recently, is apparently gaining traction among an increasing number of legislators.

Now with doubts cast about the potential magnitude of casino revenues the T-word is suddenly audible in the corridors of the state capitol. The early front runner seems to be a cigarette tax - that will fall short of meeting its objective.

Go figure.

Ryan Alessi and John Stamper report in today's H-L:

Cigarette tax hike gains traction
THREAT OF EDUCATION CUTS COULD SWAY KEY LAWMAKERS

FRANKFORT --Spurned as political suicide only weeks ago, a potential cigarette tax hike now has support from a growing bevy of heavy hitting lawmakers.

Facing the prospect of a bare-bones budget that cuts education spending, several leading Democratic lawmakers say they're exploring the possibility of doubling the state's 30-cent tax on a pack of cigs.

"It's a matter of how deep the cuts are," said Senate Minority Leader Ed Worley, D-Richmond. "If they get into K-12, then I think we need to look at the option of increasing the cigarette tax."

Worley said he and a majority of his caucus would vote to increase the tax before cutting primary or secondary education. In the Democratic-controlled House, budget committee chairman Harry Moberly, D-Richmond, said more House members seem open to a cigarette tax increase as the prospect of deep cuts to education becomes a reality.