Georgia CommonsHB 96: Revenue and taxation; pack of cigarettes; increase rate of tax
Last action January 28, 2025 · House Second Readers
House Bill 96 would raise Georgia's cigarette tax from 37 cents to $1.37 per pack of 20, then reset the rate every year to match the national average cigarette tax.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Introduced version, the latest LegiScan holds.
In plain language
Georgia currently taxes each pack of 20 cigarettes at 37 cents under the state's tobacco and vaping tax law (O.C.G.A. § 48-11-2). This bill would raise that tax to $1.37 per pack, with a proportional rate for other package sizes. Beyond the immediate increase, the bill sets up an ongoing adjustment: starting January 1, 2026, and on the first day of every year after that, the state tax commissioner would reset the per-pack cigarette tax to match the national average state cigarette tax. This means the rate would no longer be a fixed number in the law but would automatically track what other states charge on average, changing year to year.
What the bill does
- Raises the state excise tax on a pack of 20 cigarettes from 37 cents to $1.37, with a proportional rate for other package sizes.
- Requires the tax commissioner to reset the cigarette tax rate each year starting January 1, 2026, to match the national average state cigarette tax.
- Repeats the annual reset every year after 2026 so the rate keeps following the national average rather than staying fixed.
- Repeals any existing Georgia laws that conflict with the new tax rate or annual adjustment process.
Who it affects
Cigarette retailers and wholesalers who collect and remit the tax, tobacco manufacturers and distributors doing business in Georgia, smokers who would pay more per pack, and the Georgia Department of Revenue, which would calculate and apply the annual rate adjustment.
Why it matters
Smokers in Georgia would pay significantly more in state tax per pack, and that amount would keep changing yearly based on other states' tax rates rather than staying fixed by statute. Retailers and the Department of Revenue would need to track and apply a rate that shifts annually.
Key provisions
- Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 48-11-2(a)(3) to raise the per-pack cigarette tax from 37 cents to $1.37, effective immediately upon enactment.
- Section 1 also directs that beginning January 1, 2026, the tax rate be reset to the national average state cigarette tax as determined by the commissioner.
- Section 1 requires this reset to happen again on the first day of every year after 2026, tying Georgia's rate permanently to the national average.
- Section 2 repeals any other Georgia laws that conflict with these changes.
From the bill
“this tax shall be set to the national average tax on cigarettes, as determined by the commissioner, beginning January 1, 2026, and reset to the national average tax on cigarettes, as determined by the commissioner, on the first day of each year thereafter”
Status timeline
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Samuel Park (D, HD-107)
- Carolyn Hugley (D, HD-141)
- Michelle Au (D, HD-050)
- Floyd Griffin (D, HD-149)
- Jasmine Clark (D, HD-108)
- Long Tran (D, HD-080)
Topics
- cigarette tax
- tobacco regulation
- state revenue
- excise taxes