Scale and Public Health: Missouri's Cigarette Tax Rate

Abstract

Proposition B, which would have raised the tobacco tax in Missouri from 17 cents per pack to 90 cents, narrowly failed in the 2012 general election, leaving Missouri with the lowest tobacco tax in the United States. Despite scientific and economic evidence demonstrating the health and economic benefits of higher tobacco taxes, Missouri remains reluctant to cave into pressure levied by various organizations to raise the rate. There are eight other cigarette tax jurisdictions along Missouri's borders, and three of the states have per-pack taxes of over 1 dollar. This presents an economic opportunity, as Missouri border towns have become a destination for large cigarette purchases. Based on the competitive advantage Missouri cigarette vendors have over similar vendors in adjacent states, we intend to explore the results of the Proposition B vote to examine whether certain border areas were most strongly against the Proposition because it might hurt their local economy.