Vote no on Amendment 3

There are many troubling provisions in constitutional Amendment 3 to raise the tobacco tax that could irreparably harm public education, health and research in our state.

The North Carolina-based parent company of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, maker of cigarette brands such as Camel and Winston, has spent $8 million and counting to amend Missouri's constitution for the sole purpose of increasing its profit margins through this slick tax scheme.

Big Tobacco has slipped language into the fine print of Amendment 3 that dilutes Missouri's strict, century-old constitutional ban on taxpayer dollars being diverted from public K-12 schools and sent to religious and private schools. As budget chairman for Higher Education, I understand the importance of educating our citizens. This is a shortsighted approach that creates more bureaucracy.

Amendment 3 also handcuffs public safety by restricting funding for the enforcement of tobacco laws; and, it bans funding of research on the harmful effects of tobacco smoke, including its impact on young children.

I am proud to be apart of the large bipartisan coalition of state representatives and senators from across the state that is voting "No" on this controversial constitutional amendment.

Amendment 3 is such a terrible idea that it's also opposed by groups such as American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association in Missouri, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and Tobacco-Free Missouri.

I urge you to join us in voting "no" on Amendment 3.

Rep. Donna Lichtenegger, Jackson