Drink to Healthcare Reform
The U.S. Senate Finance Committee is considering raising taxes on wine, beer and liquor and imposing a new levy on soda and other naturally sweetened drinks to help pay for overhauling health care. Committee members believe the so-called “lifestyle tax proposals” would help pay the $1.5 trillion tab over the next decade to revamp the system while slowing sales of unhealthy products that contribute to rising medical costs. All alcoholic beverages would be taxed at the same rate, based on their alcohol content, eliminating the lower rate that beer and wine now have. The tax on a six-pack of beer would rise from 33 cents to 81 cents. The tax on wine would increase from 21 cents a bottle to 70 cents. The tax on hard liquor would rise from $2.14 to $2.54 for a 750-milliliter bottle. Overall, the higher taxes would raise an estimated $60 billion over 10 years.
Another set of taxes would hit sugar-sweetened drinks, which are not currently taxed by the federal government. Although the exact rate has not been set, the Senate Finance Committee has proposed taxing per 12 oz container of these beverages. It would cover carbonated and noncarbonated drinks sweetened with sugar, high-fructose corn syrups and similar sweeteners. These would include sodas, iced teas and coffees, energy and sports drinks, fruit and vegetable drinks and flavored milks. It would not apply to artificially sweetened drinks. The Congressional Budget Office estimated a tax of 3 cents per 12 oz container, which would raise an estimated $50 billion over the next decade.
Rep. Mike Thompson is dubious. The St. Helena Democrat and co-chairman of the congressional wine caucus said the proposal “would be trading tax dollars for jobs and makes absolutely no sense for the wine and wine grape community, health care reform or our economy.”
So, why not tax fast-food instead of further damaging an already frail California economy or slugging a wine industry that’s already on the ropes? Because at this point, McJobs are the only avenue left for job growth, and the Big Mac is subsidized food for the poor.
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