Last February, Vermont lawmakers had proposed a 92% wholesale tax on vaping products and other electronic devices, in the hope that it would generate $1.1 million in revenue in the fiscal year 2022.
Vermont Lawmakers are hoping that this harsh tax which would apply to all electronic cigarette products, including devices and e-liquids that do not contain nicotine, would generate $1.1 million in revenue in fiscal year 2022. All revenue generated would be deposited into the State General Fund.
The “Tobacco Products Tax” expanded the existing definition of “other tobacco products”, and now includes:
- E-cigarettes.
- Vaping hoodies.
- Vaping liquid cartridges.
- Vaping liquid.
- “Repair parts that can only be used in vaping devices.”
This unreasonable tax could lead to an economic disaster
Imposing such a tax sends the wrong message, perpetuating the current misinformation about the devices which have the potential of saving millions of lives otherwise lost to smoking.
Meanwhile an article published on the Heartland Institute’s website back in February, had pointed out that this regulation threatens to exterminate the benefits that e-cigarettes provide. The piece had explained that a 40% wholesale tax imposed on the products in Pennsylvania in 2016, had negative consequences resulting in the closure of hundreds of businesses and loss of jobs.
Additionally, said the article, lawmakers interested in protecting public health in Vermont should adjust how they currently use tobacco funds. In 2018, “Vermont received $106.1 million (estimated) in tobacco settlement payments and taxes.” In the same year, the state spent $3.6 million, three percent of tobacco funding received and “42.4 percent of the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention’s annual spending target,” on tobacco control efforts including education and cessation.
Vaporizers should have lower taxes than cigarettes
Moreover, research keeps indicating that vaping products are significantly safer than cigarettes, and the most effective smoking cessation tools to date. To this effect, many public health experts agree that lawmakers should regulate these two products in a way that is relative to their risks. Imposing such a harsh tax on e-cigarettes sends the wrong message to the public, and perpetuates the current misinformation about the devices which have the potential of saving millions of lives, otherwise lost to smoking.
Read Further: USA Today
