Businesses, smokers speak out against tax

Font Size:

By Thomas Geyer | Thursday, March 15, 2007 1:36 AM CDT | () comments

Dorie Meyers, manager of the Cigarette Outlet on West Locust Street in Davenport, said the cigarette tax that Iowa Gov. Chet Culver will sign into law today will hurt area businesses and do nothing to curb smoking.

“He won’t get re-elected, I hope,” Meyers said. “This is a family business, and it’s really going to hurt us. And it’s going to hurt Davenport bad. The city is going to lose a lot of money.”

Already she is seeing her stock of cigarettes fall as consumers stock up before the tax hits.

The bill will take effect immediately once Culver signs it into law. Smokers won’t pay the higher tax immediately, however, because most retailers still will have cigarette inventories on hand carrying the current 36-cent-per-pack tax rate.

But those stockpiles, according to state officials, will run out in five to eight days. After that, every pack will carry a new $1.36 state tax charge.

What people will do is find other places to get their cigarettes cheaper, Meyers said.

The higher prices will cause her to add security measures to the store to deter burglars, she said. And there will be a greater number of cigarette thefts to supply the demand on the black market.

“My sales will drop, but my expenses will go up,” Meyers said.

“They say they want people to stop smoking. That’s the government getting involved where it doesn’t belong. They’re lining their own pockets.”

Stacy Padavich, 32, of Davenport, said she might stop smoking if it becomes too expensive.

“But I go to Missouri once a month,” she said.

Chris Heidegerken, 57, of Davenport, said he has six kids and only one smokes occasionally.

“I’m stocking up now, and then I might go out of state for them,” he said.

“I’m a voter, and I’m voting against them next time,” he said of area politicians in the state Legislature. “I’m just waiting for the law against obesity.”

Mike Kehl, owner of the Smoke Stop on West Kimberly Road in Davenport, said the new tax will put him out of business, a business that he opened only in May.

“I’m not a politician, but they didn’t think this thing through,” he added. “They say they want to protect people’s health, but I don’t buy that for a minute.

“There’s other ways to raise tax dollars. The government has bigger problems they need to worry about.”

He added that many of his customers are pre-ordering to beat the new tax.

But there are some who are happy with the new Iowa tax. Pardeep Singh who runs the Mobil gasoline station at 7th Avenue and 15th Street in Rock Island is looking forward to an increase in his business.

“A dollar a pack tax will help us,” he said, adding that an Iowan’s money “is green just the same as it is in Illinois.”

Thomas Geyer can be contacted at (563) 383-2328 or tgeyer@qctimes.com.