Posted on 03/01/2011 7:03:06 PM PST by smokingfrog
Cancer survivor and seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong wants the tax on cigarettes in California raised from 87 cents per pack, to $1.87. Other tobacco products would also be taxed with an equally large increase. Mr. Armstrong is a co-founder of the California Cancer Research Act, proposed legislation estimated to generate over $800 million annually for cancer research, prevention, treament and education. Cancer survivor Don Perata is the bill’s sponsor. Perata was a California state legislator for four years ending in 2008, and currently is a lobbyist for a California prison guard union.
Mr. Armstrong said, “The scale of this disease and the devastation that it takes on, not even a daily or weekly basis, but on an hourly basis, is immense. I think the people working in the labs and working in the hospitals are certainly worthy of an initiative like this.” (Source: LA Times)
Tobacco corporation Philip Morris is already beginning to fight against the proposed tax increase by donating $128,000 in February alone for a counter campaign. Organizers for the Cancer Research Act succeeded in collecting over 400,000 signatures to get the bill on a statewide ballot for next February. However, governor Jerry Brown wants to have a special election this June, and voting for the CCRA could take place then. If Governor Brown is successful in getting two-thirds of the California legislature to vote for the June special election, Californians will get their say on CCRA in a little over three months.
Armstrong founded a cancer non-profit years ago called the Livestrong Foundation, which has raised $325 million so far. Those funds have gone to support cancer research and survivor support programs. Armstrong has retired from cycling, and is focusing his attention on cancer awareness and fundraising for research.
(Excerpt) Read more at care2.com ...
If they want to beat this thing they have got to do better then 128K. Sounds like they are giving up.
Well, maybe I’d agree to it if the government used the money to buy toilet paper for everyone so that his scumbag girlfriend could use more than one square to wipe her dirty a$$.
Why not $2 increase? Or $4? At those prices we would have something else for the Mexican drug cartel to smuggle across the border. They’ll have every Mexican taco stand selling cigs in CA.
did they not break up?
This will probably pass, but ole Lance will be shocked that the money it raises will most likely get sucked into CA’s black hole budget vortex.
If there was any justice in this world, Don Perata would have a much closer relationship with prison guards than a mere lobbyist.
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Hmmm. Cigarettes are pretty heavily taxed already. How would he feel about an adultery tax, or a narcissism tax?
It won’t raise any money. It will kill revenues, like every other tobacco tax that’s ever been imposed.
But these people are too stupid to learn from history. That’s why they’re Marxists.
Um, yeah, Mr. Armstrong, the actual tax on a pack of cigarettes in CA (including the federal tax) is already $1.87 per pack. Thus, an additional increase of $1.00 would bring the tax per pack to nearly three dollars a pack. Who will be most impacted, Mr. Armstrong? The poor. Yes, indeed. These liberals are most assuredly working hard to protect the poor.
Wisdom from the Uniballer... Yeah right...
“Armstrong wants the tax on cigarettes in California raised from 87 cents per pack, to $1.87”
After the tax passes, Phillip Morris should just double the pack size.
I thought a pack of cigs was over five bucks? I don’t believe for a second that there’s only 87 cents tax. I guess the rest is federal tax? Sorry, I’m not up on cigarette taxes... I just know that when I see packs for five bucks and cartons for fifty I’m shocked. I quit in 1990, and I seem to recall them being about a buck a pack the last time I bought them.
He needs to mind his own business. No more taxes.
What happens to people when they become celebrities? Lance you earned a STFU! RIP!
He cares so much about people.
Everybody look at lance and go "OOOooohhh!"
lancearmstrong RT @LIVESTRONG One Step Closer to a @SmokeFreeTexas. Pls share this study w/ your reps today! Save $ and lives http://bit.ly/gIg5QS #txleg
about 7 hours ago
lancearmstrong Just landed in LA 2 launch #CCRA w/ great partners like @AmericanCancer, @TobaccoFreeKids, and @American_Heart. Bold initiative 2 save lives
1 day ago
http://mobile.twitter.com/lancearmstrong
He’s nuts. Well, sorta.
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