Source: Cleveland.com, Steven Litt
Date: April 29, 2024
Abstract:
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Board members of Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, the government agency that distributes cigarette tax money to the arts, voted unanimously on Monday to ask Cuyahoga County Council to approve a November ballot item that would enable county voters to increase the tax from 1.5 cents to 3.5 cents per cigarette.
The tax could raise an estimated $160 million between 2026 and 2035 and bolster revenues that have declined sharply since voters first approved the tax in 2006. In its first year of funding, the 10-year tax produced roughly $20 million for arts and cultural organizations across the county.