Today, Berkeley city council officials will decide on whether or not to put a tax targeting sugary drinks on the November ballot. The tax would put a penny-per-ounce tax on all sodas and sugar-sweetened beverages in the city.
Under the new tax, energy drinks would be included; however diet sodas and juices would be exempted.
Though this isn’t the first time a tax like this has been introduced, only for it to fail. Last year, voters in the City of Richmond overwhelmingly rejected Measure N, which would have levied a penny-per-ounce tax on all beverages containing added sugar.
Additionally, a similar proposal in El Monte was defeated, with 76 percent of residents voting against the tax.
Supporters of the tax say that that attempting to reduce the consumption of sugary drinks could combat the state (and country’s) growing obesity problem. The beverage industry is less than excited about this prospect. They have spent millions to fight previous ballot initiatives in Richmond and El Monte.
Concurrently, the city of San Francisco is looking into a similar initiative. No word yet on whether it will be voted on in time for the November ballot.
Read more about the tax here.