Okla. Retailers Say Cigarette Tax Increase Unfair

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. -- Oklahoma grocery and convenience store operators say Gov. Brad Henry's proposed cigarette tax increase would give tribal smokeshops an unfair advantage, reported the Associated Press.

Henry's proposal would increase the net tax on a pack of cigarettes by about 52 cents, said Rep. Clay Pope (D-Loyal), committee chairman. It would boost the excise tax on cigarettes while eliminating state and local sales taxes.

Jim Hopper, spokesman for the Oklahoma Grocer's Association, said the bill gives tribal operations a competitive advantage.

"There needs to be a level playing field for everybody," Hopper told the AP.

Mike Thornbrugh, a former state representative who is government affairs manager for QuickTrip convenience stores, said that under existing compacts with the state, tribes do not pay the $1.70 state excise tax on a carton of cigarettes and another $2.40 for state and local sales taxes, for a total advantage over non-Indian operations of $4.10.

That advantage would increase to $5.55 per carton under the legislation, Thornbrugh told the AP.

Supporters of the tax increase, including the Oklahoma Hospital Association, said the measure would raise revenue for proposed cancer treatment and trauma care centers and reduce smoking in the state.

"This is a health care issue," said Joy Leuthard of the Oklahoma Alliance on Health or Tobacco. "The health of our citizens is at stake here."

Oklahoma's tobacco tax, currently 23 cents per pack, has not been increased since 1987. The national average is 73 cents per pack, according to the AP.