Senate Considers Federal Tax On Soda

[JonLP24]

Source: CBS News

The Senate Finance Committee today is hearing proposals on how to pay for President Obama's proposed universal health care plan, which is expected to cost more than $1 trillion. Among the proposals, as Consumer Affairs reports: A three-cent tax on sodas as well as other sugary drinks, including energy and sports drinks like Gatorade. Diet sodas would be exempt.

"While many factors promote weight gain, soft drinks are the only food or beverage that has been shown to increase the risk of overweight and obesity, which, in turn, increase the risk of diabetes, stroke, and many other health problems," Michael Jacobson of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which is pushing the idea, said in his testimony. "Soft drinks are nutritionally worthless… are directly related to weight gain, partly because beverages are more conducive to weight gain than solid foods."

According to Jacobson, "Beverage companies market more than 14 billion gallons of calorie-laden soft drinks annually. That is equivalent to about 506 12-oz. servings per year, or 1.4 servings per day, for every man, woman, and child."

He argued that each penny of tax on a 12 ounce drink would raise $1.5 billion annually and lower consumption roughly one percent, improving overall health. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that a three-cent tax would generate $24 billion over the next four years.
http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/05/12/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry5009316.shtml

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/05/12/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry5009316.shtml

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Feds should be taxing the manufacturers of high fructose syrup.

That stuff is destructive to your metabolism and the ability of your body to regulate sugar.

[TheCoxwain]

9. Seconded ... but that would upset the corn farmers ...this seems a little indirect

[hatrack]

35. Yes, let's tax soda, but continue to subsidize corn/HFCS production . . .

Yeah, that makes a LOT Of sense!

:eyes:

[Lorien]

52. They can still produce ethanol. nt

[Javaman]

78. Not the farmers but the agracorps. nt

[JackRiddler]

85. Maybe, but first they must stop subsidizing it.

No?

Otherwise it's taxed to be subsidized. Tax is passed to the consumer, subsidy is what makes the policy of corn-in-everything (unless it's sugar, or sugar and corn) highly profitable in the first place.

(I still have occasional rages, years later, from the first time I picked up a plain yogurt and saw for that "modified corn starch" was in it. If I want frackin' plain yogurt and it says that on the label, I shouldn't have to check the fine print to make sure that no one added corn starch - or for that matter, whale oil, arsenic or a kitchen sink.)

[surrealAmerican]

97. Valid point.

It's like one hand doesn't know what the other is doing.

[Captain Hilts]

2. I'm all for it. It's stunning how inexpensive the 2 litre bottles of soda are and folks drink it.nt

[Old Hob]

102. yeah, we'll show them what's best for them.nt

[Taverner]

3. Soda is cheaper than water. Sounds like an awesome idea

[Warpy]

4. I'm making my own diet sodas these days

with syrup and a C02 setup.

If they tax that into impossibility, I'll just have to go back to guzzling iced tea by the gallon.

[bunnies]

5. Thats a great idea. In fact,

they should tax candy too. :thumbsup:

[WriteDown]

8. How about all carbs?

Doritos, pretzels, cheetohs...

[bunnies]

15. Fine with me! Fast food too.

Tax the hell out of all that crap. Fruits, veggies and unprocessed foods should be cheaper than all that nutrition free junk. Maybe then people would start to think about what they put in their mouths a little bit more.

[WriteDown]

16. A slippery slope....

See the plights of the lowly egg and butter. One decade they are healthy, the next they are not.

[bunnies]

18. Nah - Im talking about 'real' food vs. 'fake' food.

They're pretty easy to differentiate. An egg = real food. Rice = real food. Velveeta = fake (processed / chemical) food. Tax the crap that isnt even really fit for human consumption.

[WriteDown]

22. So you'd tax American cheese as well?

What about pepperoni and bologna since they are "processed?"

[bunnies]

29. Hell yeah I would. nt

[WriteDown]

32. I guess we'll just have to disagree...

No one is going to tax my mortadella sandwiches. :).

[bunnies]

36. lol. ok fine. But the orange cheese is OUT!

:rofl:

[Patsy Stone]

25. Until they tax fruits and vegetables that is. nt

[bunnies]

40. Taxing the actual nutritious food makes no sense.

The point is to encourage people to eat better. If the concern is health-based... then fruits and vegetables have to be more affordable than crap food. Thats the only way it makes sense.

[Patsy Stone]

58. "If you take a walk, I'll tax your feet."

'Cause I'm the Taxman...

[bunnies]

64. ummmm.......

if you piss on the ground... we'll drink it and pass it around.

Cause I'm the Laxman...

[Patsy Stone]

80. What does this mean?

:shrug:

[bunnies]

81. exactly. nt

[Patsy Stone]

91. self delete/never mind.

On second thought, having this conversation isn't worth it.

[AndyTiedye]

31. Fresh Fruits and Veggies are Expensive Because They're PERISHABLE

and because most of the country has a very short growing season,
most of the produce has to be trucked thousands of miles.

If the poor can't afford fresh produce now, and you raise the price
of the only food they can afford even higher, what are they going to eat?

[bunnies]

38. Stop. I live in NH...

and theres a store right up the street where at any time of year I can get cheap, fresh fruits and veggies. Yesterday I spend $22.00 and this is what I got:

5 lbs baby red potatos
3 lbs carrots
2 bags baby spinach
1 dozen cage free chemical free eggs
12 McIntosh Apples
6 Oranges
6 Red Grapefruit
2 lbs Strawberries
2 heads romaine
2 pints baby bella mushrooms
1 bag ea. bean sprouts / alfalfa sprouts
1 bunch bananas
1 pineapple
3 red onions
2 green peppers
2 red peppers
1 head broccoli
1/4 lb goat feta
and
1 bunch bananas

Cheaper than 4 value meals at McDonalds.

oh and add 2 bunches of celery to that also.

[Psephos]

65. Potatoes??? Enjoy those carb-bombs while you can - they'll be taxed like ciggies soon

Furthermore, you DO know that pineapple has been bred by agribusiness to have three times the sugar as an original heirloom pineapple, right? Better kiss it goodbye, too.

Ditto oranges. Ditto red grapefruit. (Go white or go home.)

Check these carbotoxins out on a glycemic index if you don't believe me. And don't neglect to cross-reference glycemic load, either.

Meanwhile, the bananas are so inbred and monocultured they no longer even produce viable seeds. They do, however, produce lots of readily-released carbs. I sure wouldn't eat one on an empty stomach.

:evilgrin:

[bunnies]

72. ...

:spray:. Dont make me come over there. Michigan isnt *that* far. :rofl: :hi:

[Psephos]

87. lol!

ok, ok, you can keep the potatoes!

:9

[MISSDem]

46. AMEN!!!

Tax away.

[Mollis]

94. I agree.

I have recently adopted a diet of the least amound of processed crap that I can...and everything else seems to be so much more expensive. It sucks.

[LostinVA]

26. Yup -- soda is liquid candy -- or, a liquid dangerous chemical mix if diet

And, whereas most people don't eat several candy bars a day, or eat 10 donuts at a time, many people DO drink several sodas a day, or suck down a Big Gulp.

I love caffeine. Drink tea (iced or hot) or coffee. Want something sweet? Eat a cookie or fruit.

Soda is literally addicting. My personal opinion is that it's the number one reason our kids are becoming obese and having diabetes problems.I drank MAYBE one soda a month growing up. We drank water, milk, 100% juice, tea, etc.

[bunnies]

34. Exactly.

We never had soda when I was growing up... but my 3 younger sisters did (theres 8 years between me and the next) and of those 3 - 1 is chunky and 2 are obese. I've seen them chug down a 2 liter or more in a day. One day! Myself - if I even take a sip of soda my eyes water and I choke up. Its like those frozen pop things... wtf is in those anyway? Chemicals and sugar. Get the kids hooked young and they'll eat like shit forever.

When I broke mr.bunnies from sugar, he lost 10lbs immediately and couldnt believe it. Ugh. That crap is E V I L.

[LostinVA]

37. I make little freezer pops from fruit juice and other things

I bought this set of little popsicle molds at IKEA for about $3.00.

I like sweet things, but I REALLY try to keep it to fruit and some dark choclate.

[bunnies]

39. Yep. Thats a great idea.

I dont know why more people dont do that. Good like finding juice thats actually juice though. We bought a juicer a few years back and I cant imagine life without it anymore. Theres nothing sweeter than a nice glass of fresh strawberry-cantaloupe :P yummmm.

[LostinVA]

47. Trader Joe's has some

[bunnies]

50. Not the same!!!

Its gotta be fresh from the juicer. Anything sold in stores has to be (at least partially) pasteurized. Meaning nutrition cooked away. I wish I could courier you some juice fresh from my juicer! :) You'll never go back to the "juice" the stores sell.

We have an extra bedroom... you two could come visit! :hi:

[LostinVA]

73. Haruka agrees with you on the juicer

We should -- we can do meditation together!

[bunnies]

107. Yes!

You can finally teach me! :bounce: I still suck at it. :(

[xxqqqzme]

105. Oh yes, I love, love, love

juicing. Strawberry juice mixed w/ just about anything is it!! When I first started juicing, I kept a diary of proportions. I also collected Snapple bottles for the juice. I couldn't keep the stuff in the house. My son was always passing it out to his friends. The kids loved it.

[bunnies]

108. lol. I know what you mean!!

I still have my first juice recipe book... I made smiley faces on the ones I liked - frowny faces on the ones I didnt... and wrote notes all over the pages. :rofl:

We have a neighbor in his early 20's who we introduced to "the juice" and it got to be that he'd just happen to show up at juice time almost every day. Next thing you know, he started bringing friends and I'd end up at the juicer for an hour. :P We use LOTS of watermelon when that happens. :hi:

[Mollis]

95. Soda is SO addicting.

I used to drink a few a day. No more. I stopped for 2 weeks...and I just don't crave it anymore. Water and tea for me. My bf on the other hand...he fights it every day. lol

[DJ13]

6. First tobacco, now soda

What private pleasure of yours will the health Nazi's deem worthy of increased taxation next?

[Name removed]

54. Deleted message

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[Name removed]

61. Deleted message

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[The River]

7. Good Start

We need more "This-Shit-Is-Bad-For-Your-Health" taxes.
If you want to consume products that ruin your health
then you should pay a little extra to offset the health
care needs it will eventually cause.

[nyy1998]

10. I wouldn't be surprised if Obama tried to negotiate

to change this. I'm not sure it goes along with the whole "behavior economics" philosophy they've embraced. They might try to see if they could bring down the cost of bottled water(which is ridiculously priced) first instead of raising the cost of soda. It would be interesting to see what kind of proposal the White House comes up with.


Well as long as my Diet Dr. Pepper is exempt, I'm good.

[ChiciB1]

11. I Never Drink Soda... But Is Flavored Water Included In This?? I Mix

half a bottle of flavored water with the other half with juice. Guess I can go "all water" but Florida water is REALLY bad! Lots of minerals I bet... I'm told minerals are good for you!

[Thothmes]

55. Don't drink any soda

unless it is mixed with Bourbon or rum.

[Tyler Generation]

12. But all low income people are forced to drink soda and smoke cigarettes!

Isn't that the typical argument?:eyes:

Good, hopefully this will make tap or bottled water a cheaper alternative and people will start taking better responsibility for their own health.

[JonLP24]

14. When it comes to class

Higher % of people that smoke are poor compared to the more wealthy. This doesn't bother me because it's only 3 cents but a %2000 tax increase on loose tobacco is insane.

[HopeHoops]

13. What about taxing tea bags?

That seems like a good idea!

[No Elephants]

19. Didn't work out very well for King George IIII.

[HopeHoops]

21. Or for FAUX News.

:eyes: :crazy: :silly:

We really need a :mooning: smiley. Skinner? Can you help out there?

[No Elephants]

17. Say what? The only food or beverage that has been shown to increase the risk of

overweight and obesity?

Doesn't almost everything you ingest increase the risk of overweight and obesity to one degree or another? Potato chips? Pastry?

Some words must have been left out of that sentence.

Federal sales tax, though? The words "slippery slope" leap to mind.

[Abq_Sarah]

44. The science used to implicate soda

Also implicates chips, cake, cookies, most cereals, etc...

[NC_Nurse]

20. Fine. Maybe we wouldn't see so many obese kids. Lots of parents let their kids

drink that shit. It's easy to get fat on soda, and diet soda is full of chemicals. Yuch.

[hughee99]

79. For kids who don't get any exercises,

it's not the soda that's the big problem. For kids who get a lot of exercises, the soda isn't a problem either. It's tough to get fat on soda, if you have the sort of habits that would normally keep you thin. It's really easy to "get fat on soda" if you have the sort of lifestyle where you'd get fat without it anyway.

[BattyDem]

23. Obama proposed a universal health care plan??

When? What did I miss? :shrug:

[JonLP24]

24. LOL I saw that too before I posted it

I was just waiting to see if anyone else would spot it.

[jsamuel]

27. I am a big soda drinker and I am fine with that.

I am fine with it even if it didn't exclude diet soda (although I agree with excluding it).

[LostinVA]

30. It shouldn't ve excluded -- it's probably worse than "real" soda

[jsamuel]

41. depends on what is "worse"

For teeth and sugar intake, it is probably better. Now, you can question whether there are other things wrong with diet soda, but I think it is hard to argue that it is "worse" without some scientific data backing it up.

[JerseygirlCT]

89. I completely agree

I KNOW what that diet stuff does to me, physically. It's bad news.

[Downwinder]

28. FAT TAX!!

Going to tax on caloric content?? Should be in line with tobacco tax. Say $1.00 per 8oz. bottle.

[DU GrovelBot]

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[Psephos]

66. Imagine how much could be raised by taxing grovelbot posts n/t

[Politicalboi]

42. Legalize Marijuana

And go ahead and put a 50 cent tax on a bottle of beer. Leave us smokers and soda drinkers alone.

[Lorien]

53. And how about getting the f*ck out of Iraq and closing down a few hundred

military bases. There's no longer any good reason for tens of thousands of our service members to be stationed in places like Germany and Japan.

[fujiyama]

43. I don't really know why diet soft drinks

have been excluded. That's kind of stupid. I see a lot of overweight and obese people drinking diet soda believing it's good for them. Instead they just drink more of it. And I really am not convinced that artificial sweeteners have no other negative side effects.

I like pop occasionally - maybe once a week or so with pizza or something. I think additional taxes on various junk foods couldn't hurt. But I really think the federal government should find a way to get those damn pop machines out of schools. It's sad that so many schools are in a situation where they need the revenue generated by those vending machines.

[DumpDavisHogg]

45. They MUST expand this tax to diet sodas

If they have this tax, they need to quit exempting diet sodas, which are far more dangerous than regular sodas.

Aspartame is a cancer-causing agent.

[LostinVA]

48. Exactly -- diet soda is waaaay worse than regular soda

[Celeborn Skywalker]

86. It depends.

I love soda and am diabetic so Diet soda is my only option. I guarantee you I would die quicker from 6 regular cokes a day than 6 diet cokes. I may get cancer when I'm 70, but if I was chugging down regular sodas I'd probably be dead by 50.

I do agree that if you're an occasional soda drinker without blood sugar issues, then the regular soda would be slightly "healthier".

[tabbycat31]

56. ditto

[Psephos]

67. Coke Zero lovers will say you are uninformed

It uses sucralose.

[Nevernose]

103. Prove it.

Peer reviewed, double-blind studies.

[JerseygirlCT]

90. I agree. They're at least as bad

And haven't they been shown to increase appetite in people who drink them often?

At any rate, I know I can't drink the diet stuff - GI problems and headaches ensue.

[Nevernose]

104. Do diet soda make people fat, or do fat people drink diet sodas because they're fat?

Do diet soda make people fat, or do fat people drink diet sodas because they're already fat? That's the real question here, and the research points towards the latter and not the former.

The problem with removing soda in the schools comes in the replacement income. Most schools just replace sodas with Gatorade-type drinks, which are just as unhealthy and contain almost as much sugar. Of course, the same schools have water fountains, which have the exact same water as bottled water (except for free), but kids won't drink that.

[JVS]

111. I doubt people think diet pop is good for them, it's just that adding more calories would be worse

[mbperrin]

49. I'm sure glad that we have time to discuss this in the Senate since it

has been conclusively proven now that torture is good for you, but looking at torture photos is bad.

SO GO GET THOSE SODA BASTARDS!!!

WOO-HOO! Not like there's anything pressing.....

[IndianaGreen]

51. A lot of us soda drinkers will punish any politician that votes for this crappy tax increase

Don't FRAK with us!

[MindPilot]

57. If they are that bad for people just ban them.

And I will continue to get real Coke with real sugar from Mexico like I do now.

[Psephos]

68. Or you can get Pepsi Throwback products right here in the US of A n/t

[MindPilot]

74. I actually discovered that on Tuesday!

My girlfriend brought it home for me and I didn't realize at first what it was. I said "Pepsi Throwback?! What's next, Coke Geezer?"

[Psephos]

77. lol! n/t

[SomeGuyInEagan]

82. Tried that last week - my, what a difference

I don't drink much soda anymore and when I do it usually diet because the regular stuff is just too sweet. I tried the throwback - much less sweet and certainly not as harsh as the regular stuff. If they put it in glass bottles, I think they'd sell a lot.

[mule_train]

59. first, they came for the soda, but i said nothing, becasue i did not drink soda nt

[A Simple Game]

62. Exactly!

Don't think for a minute that they want to tax it because it is bad for you.
They want to tax it because so much is sold each day.
Calling it a fat tax is just an excuse.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

60. How about a tax on smug?

[Psephos]

69. Budget surplus by 2011 if they can pass that n/t

[southerncrone]

63. Diet drinks should be included, too. Nutrasweet is more dangerous than

sugar or corn syrup. Connected to increase in appetite & brain cancer.

[WriteDown]

76. Fruit is connected to increased risk of cancer in smokers...

We probably need an extra fruit tax too, but only if you smoke.

[southerncrone]

93. My point is if taxing soda, then ALL soda should be taxed. Especially if

it's a effort to improve health. It's like taxing cigarettes, but not the ultra light cigs. Makes no sense to exclude some.

I personally am not necessarily in favor of taxing ANY food. As others have said, this is a slippery slope.

[friedgreentomatoes]

70. Some vindication for smokers. Maybe. n/t

[Hannah Bell]

71. tax everything! except the top 5%.

[JVS]

110. But we'll see some snobs here praise a regressive tax because it is on a product that offends...

their yuppie wholefoods consumerist fetish.

[Freddie Stubbs]

75. How regressive of a tax will this be?

:shrug:

[bikebloke]

83. How about taxing the rich?

Oh yeah, that would cut the trickle down wealth. And I want to buy another yacht.:sarcasm:

[apnu]

84. Except Diet Soda? The #1 selling soda? WHY?

My God, they're stupid.

If you're gonna tax soda and energy drinks, fine. Just tax all of them you morons!

[JerseygirlCT]

88. Although I do love soda, I'm ok with this. I'm not at all ok about

exempting diet stuff, however. It's still just as junky, and who really knows what those artificial sweetners do to your health? I know I cannot tolerate them.

Tax the whole lot if it will go toward paying for health care. (I'd like to see that made part of it, for sure - not into general funds where it could buy a new toy in the defense dept.)

[Jkid]

92. I don't mind taxing sodas

As long as they include diet sodas.

[ProudDad]

96. Make it $2.00 a bottle

and I'm all for it!

Stuff's crap...it's all fizzy water, chemicals and high fructose corn syrup (filling ADM and Cargill's pockets).

[Yavin4]

98. Why Not Legalize Marijuana and Tax That

Then tax all the junk food which will see sky rocketing sales because of the legalization of marijuana. That ought to pay for everything.

I'll accept my genius award at any time.

[lynne]

99. Beer, Wine and Liquor needs to be taxed and taxed hard -

- to help reduce alcohol related birth defects, disease associated with drinking and accidents. Win-Win.

[joshcryer]

101. The alcohol lobby makes any other lobby look like a joke.

They wouldn't have it in a million years.

[joshcryer]

100. Tax alcohol.

Do it, I dare you.

[EndersDame]

106. Well since there is a tax on ciggarettes

Its only logical..Soon all the others who partake in unhealthy activities will demonized as well.

[KamaAina]

109. It'll never work. People will just drive to the northern states

and get their tax-free "pop". :-)