Articles & News Stories
"Health issues need solutions, not blame"
The Portland Tribune
August 11, 2011
"Obesity is a serious problem for Oregon as well as our nation. Solving it requires a lot more than snappy sound bites or discriminatory food and beverage taxes..."
"A Soda Tax? How About a Potato Tax?"
Los Angeles Times
June 25, 2011
"The time has come, America, for a tater tax. Now that a groundbreaking study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has demonstrated that potatoes may be a bigger culprit in weight gain than sugary soft drinks or red meat..."
"Slim Odds"
Regulation
Spring 2011
"Free lunches are hard to turn down for a city staring into the fiscal abyss. As it faces dwindling revenues and the increased demand for public services that usually accompanies a recession, Philadelphia, like most other U.S. cities, is looking for new ways to make a buck..."
"My Case Against A Snack Tax To Battle Childhood Obesity"
Reisterstown Patch
March 21, 2011
"While I am a big proponent of healthy eating (and lifestyles in general), I also think that we should all be free to eat what we want..."
"Pop a tab and pour a lie"
THE DAILY
March 7, 2011
"How much do journalists love taxes and hate soda? Lots, it would appear."
"Extension of Bush Tax Cuts Helping the Middle Class"
U.S. News & World Report
January 14, 2011
"Economists and lawmakers often like to talk in grandiose numbers. A tax increase will raise millions of dollars. A tax cut will save millions of dollars..."
"Soda Tax: Will It Actually Help Lower Obesity Rates?"
The Huffington Post
November 18, 2010
"It turns out that there is practically no reliable scientific support for using soda taxes to fight obesity..."
"D.C. Council must cut spending to finalize 2011 city budget"
The Washington Post
May 16, 2010
"This week, D.C. Council Members begin final deliberations on the city's fiscal 2011 budget. To date, much of the discussion has centered on what new taxes can be imposed..."
"Soft Drink or 'Soft Head' Tax?"
KSBW-TV
March 25, 2010
"In the past few weeks -- and especially in the past few days -- the push to get a new tax on soft drinks has been getting a lot of attention. ..."
"Why Phila. soda tax has already gone flat"
Philadelphia Inquirer
March 24, 2010
"Mayor Nutter's proposed soda tax has gotten the attention and analysis a proposed new tax deserves. The scrutiny has shown why it shouldn't be enacted. ..."
"Close to Home" Comic
The Washington Post
March 22, 2010
"Instead of passing the fat tax on soda, the government required that people do 10 chin-ups before the cooler will open."
"Another drink tax?"
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
March 22, 2010
"The last thing Pittsburghers want is another drink tax. At a time when people are still struggling through a recession, Pennsylvania's beverage industry along with Pittsburgh's restaurants, grocers and voters are understandably concerned about imposing another discriminatory and regressive tax on the city's residents, businesses and visitors. ..."
"Sugar Tax on Soft Drinks Will Hurt Everyone"
The Philadelphia Sunday SUN
March 22, 2010
"The latest tax proposal coming out of City Hall is unfair, untimely and will effectively do little outside of drive jobs and business out of Philadelphia. ..."
"Can You Tax Away Obesity?"
The Huffington Post
February 16, 2010
"All year long, newscasts have been filled with stories on healthcare reform and obesity in America. There's no doubt that our current medical care delivery system is in need of some repair and refinement. And, most agree that we have an obesity epidemic on our hands. ..."
"No Soda Tax-Government Can't End Obesity in America"
US News & World Report
October 28, 2009
"Obesity is a public health crisis in the United States. There's no debating that it is caused by Americans' sedentary lifestyles and poor food choices. ..."
"5 Myths We Need to Can About Soda Taxes"
The Washington Post
September 27, 2009
"Like bears to honey or zombies to brains, politicians find something irresistible about soda taxes. ..."
"Soda tax isn't the solution"
The Boston Globe
September 25, 2009
"Clearly Derrick Z. Jackson supports a soda tax, as his recent column isn't his first on the topic ("Soda tax: It's the real thing,'' Op-ed, Sept. 19). However, he needs to take note of the facts..."
"Then They Came for the Fresca"
Slate.com
September 22, 2009
"A nonalcoholic sequel to the Whiskey Rebellion seems to be brewing. And Slate may be joining it. I'll call it the Fresca Rebellion, in honor of our editor, David Plotz, a hard-core addict of the citrus-flavored soft drink.."
"Public Health Leaders Propose Soda Tax"
ABC News
September 17, 2009
"Several of the nation's leading health experts are calling for a tax on soda as a means of curbing America's obesity-epidemic..."
"Soda Tax: The Revenge"
Reason Magazine
July 28, 2009
"The newish head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Thomas Freiden-the man who helped bring trans fat and smoking bans to NYC as the city's health commissioner-wants to have another go at taxing soda..."
"Past Efforts to Tax Soda Pop Have Fizzled"
TaxAnalysts.com
May 2009
"Before federal lawmakers consider taxing soda or sugary drinks to help pay for
healthcare reform, they may want to look at the idea's checkered history at the state
level..."