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Proposed cigarette fee drops 13 cents
By: Joshua Sabatini
07/03/09 2:47 PM PDT
Smokers may soon be paying more per pack in San Francisco, but that cost will likely be less than was originally proposed.
The Board of Supervisors will vote Tuesday on whether to approve a 20 cent per cigarette pack fee, which would go into effect Oct. 1 if approved.
Mayor Gavin Newsom initially proposed a 33 cent fee on each purchase of cigarettes to recoup The City’s cost of litter cleanup.
The fee was lowered when a final study came out showing the cost to clean up discarded butts on streets and sidewalks was lower than thought. The final study found it costs The City $7.5 million a year — not more than $10 million as once thought — to clean up the butts making 22 cents the highest legal fee the city could impose.
Newsom went for an even 20 cent fee proposal.
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