Our Democratic Governor wants to raise state tobacco tax to $3 per pack. If the price goes up, tobacco alone would raise $130 million over a two-year period. Forty-two states and the District of Columbia have increased cigarette taxes since Jan. 1, 2002, doubling the state tax from 43.4 cents to one dollar a pack.

Studies from Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids say that every 10 percent increase for cigarettes will reduce youth smoking about 7 percent, and total cigarette consumption by about 4 percent.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 16.2 percent of high school students smoke. About 1,700 kids (under 18) become daily smokers, and kids under 18 alive in Maine who will ultimately die prematurely from smoking is estimated at 27,000. That’s only leaving about 1.24 million left in Maine’s population.

In 2005, Maine was spending $14.69 million on tobacco prevention. Recommended minimum spending on Tobacco Prevention is $11.19 million. Since so many people are dying from cigarettes, this may be why Maine is spending more money than normal to help prevent it and save lives.

The state is actually doing the right thing for once. After raising the tax, maybe people will notice that if they keep buying tobacco they’ll go broke, and then they might try to quit smoking and keep their money for something more valuable. The legislation to increase cigarette tax should be passed in the state of Maine.

Claire N. Ross