Tax all the cigarettes and alchohol you want. But when Uncle Sam starts messing with Moutain Dew and Dr Pepper...that's where I draw the line! A CALIFORNIA state lawmaker wants to raise an estimated $350 million a year to fight childhood obesity through a proposed tax on soda pop. The state measure faces an uphill battle, but it is already roiling the soft-drink industry while winning plaudits from public health organizations. Proponents hope it will intensify the national debate on obesity and the role that junk food plays in it. Senate Bill 1520 would impose an excise tax on sweetened beverages sold to retail dealers after July 1, 2003. Sen. Deborah V. Ortiz, the bill’s author, anticipates that pop distributors would pass the cost along to consumers, which would amount to about two cents on a 12-ounce soda. Soft drinks containing more than 50% fruit or vegetable juice would be exempt, as would most diet soft drinks. The tax isn’t big enough to change drinking habits, she says, but the proceeds would fund school and public health programs to mitigate the consequences of soft-drink consumption. Recent studies show that sodas account for “huge infusions of sugar” and are replacing milk and other nutritious beverages in children’s diets, she adds. The tax money would be used partly to replace funds that schools would lose by dropping contracts with soda companies to sell pop on campus. Soft-drink industry representatives say they are shocked to see their product singled out and demonized as the main culprit behind the obesity problem. They say the bill is the first to link a soft-drink tax to children’s health or obesity . “We’re very surprised to see soft drinks being elevated to the sin-tax level,” says Robert Achermann, a spokesman for the California Nevada Soft Drink Association, whose members account for about 95% of carbonated-beverage sales in California. He objects to comparisons between the proposed bill and existing helmet laws. “Driving a motorcycle without a helmet is an inherently dangerous activity; drinking soda pop doesn’t fall into that category,” he says. No one doubts that childhood obesity is a grave problem across the country. In California, 30% of children are overweight or obese. Overweight youngsters face increased risks for many serious health problems, including high blood pressure, arthritis and osteoporosis, that until recently were rare during childhood. Ms. Ortiz, a Latina with a family history of diabetes, is particularly alarmed by the rise in children of so-called adult-onset, or type-2, diabetes. Senate Bill 1520 was inspired by debate over a recently enacted California bill to bolster nutrition among school children and restrict soft-drink sales at elementary schools. Ms. Ortiz says that discussion exposed the “odd relationship” between schools and soda companies. In Los Angeles, for instance, some high schools earn between $10,000 and $25,000 a year from soda sales. School officials say that without those funds they don’t have the money to support sports programs and other school clubs.
It's already taxed in Texas! Except in soft drink machines, but I'm sure somehow they collect tax, probably on overall revenue on the machine.
i gave up pop recently cuz i was drinking way too much of it. its really not as hard as i thought. well see how long it lasts and hopefully a tax like this only helps.
Lucky you. I tried giving it up but one thing has kept me on them...caffeine! The headaches I get after going a day or two without a soda are terrible. I have tried but not yet succeeded.
I think the Internet is the biggest reason for child obesity. If I had the net growing up, instead of rounding up a couple of people to pass the time shooting hoops, I probably would have hung out in a chatroom or something.
i was never hooked on the caffeine. i could easily have just gone with sprite or caffeine free stuff. it was the sugar i think. but the good thing is, ive been able to not replace the pop with juices, which surprisingly have the same sugar content and calories about as pop does. lil pun; alot of it is mental. you have to give yourself a reason to quit or else it becomes a fight against your own body. make it a goal or give yourself incentives.
Who gives a rats?? Until you people give a topic heading that implies what the message is about I'm gonna keep bringing up old news. You can't stop me. Speaking of sugary pops and breaking the habit...have any of you tried Propel water by Gatorade? Better tasting than plain water but just a touch of sugar...4 grams I think. os
Well excuse me for being someone with no other earthly duty but to read every single topic on this board. I'm sorry I don't have a life deemed interesting enough to skip threads or, God forbid, whole days of posting. From here on out, catchy, witty titles of threads designed to pique a reader's interest are forever banned so that Old School will not repeat things other people post.