Cigarette sales in South Dakota fell 20 percent after the state raised cigarette taxes by $1 per pack last year, the Associated Press reported Dec. 22.

In the 11-month period ending in November, South Dakota residents consumed an estimated 9 million fewer packs of cigarettes than they did in the 11 months before the tax went into effect, state officials said.

Some smokers may be buying cigarettes out of state, but officials said others appear to be quitting. In either event, the state is benefitting through higher tax revenues despite the lower sales figures.