America’s soda drinking may soon lose its fizz.
To combat the country’s high rates of obesity and overweight, Rep. Rosa Delauro (D-Conn.) proposed a national soda tax on Wednesday that would make the consumption of sugary beverages more expensive.
The Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Tax Act, or the SWEET Act for short, would institute a one cent tax for every teaspoon of sugar in soda, energy drinks, and sweet teas. Because a 20-ounce bottle of soda typically contains 16 teaspoons of sugar, the tax would amount to 16 cents per 20-ounce soda bottle.
The goal of the excise tax is two-fold. The first is that the added cost will discourage the consumption of sugary beverages, allegedly a prime culprit in national obesity and overweight rates and secondly, that revenue from the tax will be used for the Prevention and Public Health Fund, which was created by Obamacare.
“There is a clear relationship between sugar-sweetened beverages and a host of other health conditions, including diabetes, heart disease, obesity and tooth decay,” Delauro said in a statement. “We are at a crucial tipping point and the SWEET Act will help correct the path we are currently on.”
According to the text of the bill, the tax would apply to “any liquid intended for human consumption which contains a caloric sweetener,” such as energy and sports drinks, sweet teas and soda. Milk, soy milk, infant formula, and vegetable juices would be exempted.
The SWEET Act has been loudly endorsed by both public health and consumers interests’ groups.
“Soda and sugary beverages are the new tobacco and the fight to reduce their marketing and consumption is the next great public health battle,” said Larry Cohen, executive director of the Prevention Institute and supporter of Delauro’s bill.
But in a blog post on Thursday, the day after Delauro unveiled her bill, the American Beverage Association challenged the very premise of a soda tax, saying that “you can’t tax your way to better health.”
This not the first proposal to seek higher taxes on sugary drinks, but most of these battles have been fought at the state and local levels.
Is anyone else having flashbacks to Michael Bloomberg’s nanny-state New York City?
