Cigarette Tax Hike Proposed

Lawmaker wants a $1 cigarette tax hike to pay for construction program

Taking a smoking break could get more expensive. 

Senate President John Cullerton on Tuesday proposed raising the state cigarette tax by $1 per pack to compensate for a loss of funding for the state's $31 billion construction program.

The Illinois Appellate Court ruled paying for the project with video poker and increased liquor taxes was unconstitutional.

The case is pending a decision from the Illinois Supreme Court

Illinois currently taxes 98 cents for a pack of cigarettes. The House snuffed out an attempt in January to raise the tax by a $1.01 a pack.

Cullerton aides expect the legislation to surface in the next few days.

"The construction program is too important to risk delays," Cullerton spokesman John Patterson told the Chicago Sun-Times.

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