D.__To cover the costs associated with the recommendations of the Commission to Study Public Health related to encouraging healthy diets and physical fitness among youth, including educational campaigns, $2,500,000.

2.__Community-based programs.__To enhance community-based disease prevention and health promotion, $11,660,000 of the revenue generated pursuant to section 4365 must be distributed annually to the following programs in the following amounts:

A.__To increase the number of school-based health centers across the State, $2,160,000;

B.__To provide primary health care to low-income uninsured and underinsured patients in medically underserved areas of the State, $3,000,000; and

C.__To implement the disease prevention and health promotion provisions of the State Health Plan described under Title 2, chapter 5 at the community level, $6,500,000.

3.__Other.__The sum of $50,000,000 from revenue generated pursuant to section 4365 must be distributed annually to health- related programs other than those listed in subsections 1 and 2, including for support and stabilization of MaineCare.

Emergency clause. In view of the emergency cited in the preamble, this Act takes effect July 1, 2005.

SUMMARY

This bill increases the cigarette excise tax from $1 to $2.50 per pack and allocates the new revenue to a variety of health- related purposes. It also reduces accordingly the percentage discount paid to distributors for tax stamps that the distributors purchase and affix.