The Plan To Tax Soda Products — Good Or Bad?

I suspect that many of us would place a lot of the blame for today’s obesity epidemic on soda products.  There is little doubt that they account for a large share of the “empty calories” each of us may consume in a given day.  I know — I like them.  At one time, I drank two or three 12-ounce cans of soda each day.  Usually RC, but I didn’t really discriminate.  Coke or Pepsi were fair game as well.  A few years ago, I read that sodas have actually replaced coffee as the most common morning drink among Americans.  At that time, I fully understood the sentiment.  I couldn’t stand coffee.

As concern over the obesity epidemic continues to grow, and local and state government coffers get pinched, we’re starting to see a greater number of schemes being developed to address both problems.  The most recent comes from New York State, which is looking at a $15 billion deficit.  Their plan is to add a tax of $0.15 per beverage on sugar-containing soda products.  Now, I didn’t see what’s considered a serving, but however you slice it, that would add up pretty quickly.  I guess the tax doesn’t apply to diet soda.

Right or wrong, I think we’re going to start seeing more of the so-called “fat tax” plans getting pushed through the system.  There’s little doubt that the rising obesity rate adds substantial cost to the healthcare system, at a time when the options to pay for those costs are rapidly dwindling.  So what do you think about this plan?  Should our government legislate people’s behavior?  The same premise has been applied to cigarettes, and has probably contributed to the reduction in smoking in our society.  Should the government get even further into our lives by regulating behavior through taxes?  If its O.K. to tax sodas because of their contribution to obesity, what else is O.K.?

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