From Kristina Rasmussen of the Illinois Policy Institute…
Talk of a soda tax is bubbling up again:
CHICAGO (CBS) ― Feel like you’re taxed enough already? More could be coming. There’s an early push to explore taxing soft drinks that are sweetened with sugars – all to get you to stop buying them. CBS 2’s Kristyn Hartman reports it’s all about obesity.
A coalition of groups is in the very early stages of mapping out a plan to fight fat in Illinois. Sugared beverage consumption has tracked with rising obesity rates – so it’s getting some attention.
Supposedly, the taxes will nudge us toward healthy drink choices:
Registered Dietician Lisa Micetich, from Little Company of Mary Hospital, thinks something like a sweet beverage tax could make a healthier option more appealing.
“If people think, ‘Oh I can get milk cheaper, or for the same price,’ there’s a better alternative,” said Micetich.
So these people want us to drink healthier options like water when we’re on the go. Oh wait. We tax bottled water, too.
Soda taxes are money grabs, folks. Grabbing your money. Read more about soda taxes in our 2010 Legislators’ Guide to the Issues.