On the recordMay 21, 1998
There is legislation pending before both Houses of Congress that would raise the excise tax on tobacco products by $1.50 per pack. As a practical matter, these proposals result in a total tax increase of at least $500 billion over 25 years. This tax increase of a half trillion dollars will fall most heavily on the American working men and women. Those who make $30,000 per year pay 43 percent of the Federal tobacco tax burden. The median income in the Fifth District of Virginia, which I represent, is less than $28,000 per year. In fact, if this excise tax of $1.50 per pack goes in, the Federal tax burden on the Virginia family in the Fifth District would be more than $500 per year, and that is a staggering tax increase for a family that is struggling to make ends meet.
Source
govinfo.gov
