Congress Weighs Soda Tax

With health care reform expected to run the government around $1.2 trillion, Congress is looking for ways to pay for it. A new idea bouncing around Capitol Hill is a soda tax, reports the Wall Street Journal. “Soda is clearly one of the most harmful products in the food supply, and it's something government should discourage the consumption of,” says a public interest advocate.

A three-cent tax on a twelve-ounce soda (and similar sugary drinks, such as bottled iced tea) would raise only $24 billion over four years, but might also have returns in health savings. Responds a spokeswoman for the American Beverage Association, “Taxes are not going to teach our children how to have a healthy lifestyle.”
(More soda stories.)