The Effects of E-Cigarette Taxes on E-Cigarette Prices and Tobacco Product Sales: Evidence from Retail Panel Data

This paper estimates effects of e-cigarette taxes enacted in eight states and two large counties on prices, sales, sales other tobacco products. We use NielsenIQ Retail Scanner data from 2011 to 2017, comprising approximately 35,000 retailers nationally, develop a method standardize since adopting localities have taxed these products heterogeneous ways. estimate tax-to-price pass-through rate 1.44 Herfindahl–Hirschman Index 0.246 for retail purchases, indicating moderately highly concentrated market structure theoretically linked tax over-shifting. then calculate an own-price elasticity -1.30 positive cross-price elasticities demand between e-cigarettes cigarettes, suggesting they are economic substitutes. Other analyses explore heterogeneity price responses across flavored non-flavored cigarettes.