When the Legislature comes to Boise in January, the Idaho State Grange will lobby for a five-cent increase in Idaho's 25-cent fuel tax and for a doubling of the state tax on cigarettes to a $1.15.

The Grange says Idaho needs the money from the fuel tax to mend or replace old bridges and to improve roads, especially farm-to-market roads, said Don Johnson, state Grange president.

A fuel tax hike isn't likely to hurt agriculture as much as other fuel consumers, because fuel for ag is exempt from the state tax on gasoline and diesel.

The Grange also backs an increase on cigarette tax as a means of discouraging smoking. But if people are going to smoke, people should pay for it, and the revenue will help the state, Johnson said. The tax on cigarettes is now 57 cents a pack.

The Grange is a group that says it champions the rights of farmers