Smokers and store owners react as the tobacco tax goes up Saturday

A new voter approved tobacco tax hits on Saturday and each pack of cigarettes sold in California will go up $2.

For smokers who can’t afford it, they say it’s time to quit.

One store owner says tobacco is about 38 percent of his sales. John Chaves from the State Street Mini-Mart says he will likely see a hit, but in time, only predicts a small number of his customers will stop smoking or buying from his store.

If they do, Chaves says, “hopefully we will sell something else in its place.”

One customer Stanley Holder says he is quitting. It’s not easy but he has done it before for three months.

Another smoker calling himself only Levi said, “geez, they’re going to be $10 a pack. I think it is going to be better for my health and less expensive than what I am doing now. So I am going to quit.”