Raise taxes?

Utah is facing a $700 million shortfall, which is real money in a state this size. How would you deal with this?

Gov. Gary Herbert is reluctant to raise any taxes, but he told KSL he won’t make any guarantees.

Some lawmakers, meanwhile, want to raise cigarette and, possibly, alcohol taxes, combining that with the use of some rainy-day funds and some more cuts to programs. (Read the story here.)

Frankly, raising cigarette taxes is a no-brainer. Utah charges 69.5 cents per pack, which is way below the national average. I would bump it to $2 or more. And please, I know the arguments about becoming dependent on money from something as awful as this, and of how forcing people to quit would actually reduce the money the tax generates. Those arguments hold some merit, but the tax is now so low it serves as no deterrent whatsoever.

Alcohol is a little more tricky. Restaurants would probably raise the price of all foods, which would impact sales and hurt the economy. Utahns already pay huge markups on wine, liquor and beer.

General tax hikes (income, sales, property or even gas taxes) should be avoided right now to help the economy recover. But a growing state, with an ever growing school-age population, can’t afford to cut much more.

What do you think?