By Tom Weber, KWMU

St. Louis, MO – Missourians should soon see people at supermarkets and public places, gathering signatures for a possible ballot question this fall.

The effort is to raise the tobacco tax in the state by $0.80 a pack and raise as much as $350 million a year.

That money would go to anti-smoking programs, doctors who treat Medicaid patients, and other health services.

Cindy Erickson, with the American Lung Association, says other states with higher taxes have reported fewer smokers. " There have been 41 other states that have gone before us with a tobacco tax for many years, and it's kind of embarrassing that we're so slow and far behind as far as that's concerned," she said Tuesday.

The signature gathering didn't start sooner because there were actually two groups at one time both trying to raise tobacco taxes. Each had different ideas on how to spend the money, but last month they reached a compromise on one proposal that will avoid voter confusion.

Opponents include Governor Matt Blunt on the grounds of being against higher taxes.

The group needs to collect 145,000 valid signatures to put the question on the ballot.

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