Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 1049 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to increase the cigarette tax and to earmark cigarette tax revenue for the general fund, Department of Health health promotion programs, and smoking cessation programs.

Your Committee finds that smoking is the largest cause of morbidity and mortality in the nation that can be easily prevented. Tobacco use in the United States costs about $7.18 per pack of cigarettes sold in terms of health care expenses and decreased worker productivity. In Hawaii, this amounts to $526,000,000 in health care expenses and productivity losses.

Your Committee notes that, while increasing the tax on cigarettes is the most effective way to prevent young people from becoming daily smokers, Hawaii dropped from among the nation's leaders in cigarette taxes and now ranks only tenth in the nation. Your Committee further finds that tobacco taxes can be viewed as a user tax on the 17.3 per cent of Hawaii adults who are smokers and who do not pay the full societal costs of their tobacco use. Tobacco taxes can also be used to fund tobacco prevention programs and medical research.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1049, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1049, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.