Lowering Sin Taxes

Maybe Governor Kasich ought to look into this:

If they’re too effective at discouraging “sinful” behaviors, though, they can undermine their original revenue-raising goals. As a result, some states are now reversing course and lowering such taxes to draw more “sinners” across their borders:

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — As some states look to tobacco tax increases to plug budget holes, a few are bucking the national trend and instead are considering dropping the rate to increase cigarette sales.
In New Hampshire, supporters argue that reducing the tax by a dime would help the state compete with Maine, Vermont and Massachusetts, while opponents say it would still lose millions of dollars even if sales improved.
New Hampshire’s House voted on Thursday to reduce the tax and sent the bill to the Senate, where its prospects are uncertain. New Jersey and Rhode Island have also considered reducing their taxes.

New Hampshire has previously adopted this strategy with alcohol sales, drawing in residents of neighboring states to purchase alcohol tax-free at state-owned stores. And when you think about it, this strategy is not all that different from recent state efforts to legalize (and then find ways to tax) other activities considered verboten, like prostitution, gambling and smoking marijuana. Even gay marriage, which has long been opposed (or supported) based chiefly on social grounds, has lately had its economic merits subjected to greater scrutiny.