Thank you for contacting me to express your opposition to increasing the federal cigarette excise tax. I appreciate hearing from you.

As you may know, the Senate Committee on Finance has recently held hearings regarding the reauthorization of State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP ) . Under their current agreement, the expansion of SCHIP would be $35 billion from Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 through FY 2012. The expansion would be paid for with a 61-cent increase to the current 3 9-cent federal cigarette tax, for an even one dollar tax per pack. The Committee expects to vote on the proposal this week. Additionally, the House Committees on Ways and Means and Energy and Commerce are expected to hold hearings regarding their version of SCHIP reauthorization and the cigarette tax. Be assured that I will continue to monitor all legislation that would affect cigarette taxes with your views in mind.

Further, you would be interested to know that on March 23, 2007, the Senate approved an amendment offered by Sen. Smith to S.Con.Res. 21, the Fiscal Year 2008 Congressional Budget Resolution, by a vote of 59 to 40. The Smith amendment would have provided for the consideration of an increase in the tobacco products user fee rate of up to an additional 61 cents per pack of cigarettes. The revenue generated would have been dedicated to the reauthorization and expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.

However, Sen. Gordon Smith’s cigarette excise tax amendment was not included in the final conference report for S.Con.Res. 21. On May 17, 2007, I supported and the House approved the conference report of S.Con.Res. 21, without the Smith amendment, by a vote of 214 to 209. On the same day, the Senate approved the measure by a vote of 52 to 40.