State House approves $680 million package of tax hikes

The state House has approved a $680 million tax package that would shrink tax exemptions, collect more money from smokers and service businesses, and extend the sales tax to new types of purchases.

The 52-45 vote, which came in the pre-dawn hours Tuesday after about five hours of testy debate, finally sends ruling Democrats from the House and Senate into high-stakes negotiations over how to solve a $2.8 billion deficit in the state budget through June 2011.