New York mayor proposes levy on soft drinks to raise money for schools, health care
New York mayor proposes levy on soft drinks to raise money for schools, health care
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New Yorkers who enjoy sugary soft drinks face paying an extra tax after the city's mayor proposed a levy of 12 cents (Rs 4.8) per can.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg says tax could raise $1billion (Rs 4,500 crore) of much-needed money for schools and health care.
Bloomberg, whose administration has already targeted unhealthy trans fats in food and banned smoking from many public areas, has urged New York state legislators to impose a tax of a cent per ounce on the sugary drinks. He described the soda tax as "a fix that just makes sense", saving lives and cutting rising health care costs.
"An extra 12 cents on a can of soda would raise nearly USD 1 billion (Rs 4,500 crore), allowing us to keep community health services open and teachers in the classroom," he said on his weekly radio programme on Sunday.
"And, at the same time, it would help us fight a major problem plaguing our children: obesity."
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| Tax is healthy? | |
| US researchers estimate that an 18 per cent tax on pizza and soda can push down US adults' calorie intake enough to lower their average weight by 2 kg per year. The researchers, writing in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine on Monday, suggested taxing could be used as a weapon in the fight against obesity | |
David Paterson, the governor of New York state, came in support of Bloomberg's proposal. "Someone has got to contribute to the $7.6 billion (Rs 3,462 crore) the state spends every year to treat diseases from obesity," Paterson told reporters yesterday. He too had proposed a soda tax, but it was dropped last year following a public outcry.
However. Bloomberg has suggested a slightly different tax, involving a direct levy on drink producers, and has astutely highlighted its financial benefits at a time when the state faces a multi-billion dollar budget shortfall.
Officials in Philadelphia last week presented the city's proposed fiscal budget for 2011, which includes a two cents per ounce levy on all sugar-sweetened drinks.
The American Beverage Association, whose members include the makers of Coca-Cola and Pepsi, said Bloomberg's proposal would not work and could threaten jobs. "Taxes don't work for making people healthier," said an association spokesman.
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