What do you guys think of an idea like this? I read an idea like this in the New York Times on Sunday and did an analysis of my own right here: http://bit.ly/pYfZq1
What do you guys think? Could it actually work and help raise some revenues? Right now we basically subsidize crappy food by subsidizing corn, which can be turned into high fructose corn syrup, keeping prices artificially low.
But if we instead subsidized fresh fruits and vegetables and levied a tax against junk foods and things that are bad for us, we would not only bring in revenue during an economic downturn but also make healthier and better food more easily available to the poor.
I mean, look at these numbers:
1. According to a professor at Columbia University, a one-cent per ounce tax on sugar-laced beverages in the state of New York could save up to $3 billion in health care costs over ten years and could bring in $1 billion annually to the state
2. A two-cent tax per ounce in the state of Illinois could reduce obesity by 18%, save $350 million and bring in over $800 million in tax revenue every year
3. If implemented nationally, the United States could see revenues of $13 billion a year while cutting consumption up to 24%
4. A 20% increase in the price of sugary drinks could result in a 20% decrease in consumption, which could prevent up to 1.5 million Americans from becoming obese and 400,000 from being diagnosed with diabetes, which could save $30 billion
What do you guys think? Could it actually work and help raise some revenues? Right now we basically subsidize crappy food by subsidizing corn, which can be turned into high fructose corn syrup, keeping prices artificially low.
But if we instead subsidized fresh fruits and vegetables and levied a tax against junk foods and things that are bad for us, we would not only bring in revenue during an economic downturn but also make healthier and better food more easily available to the poor.
I mean, look at these numbers:
1. According to a professor at Columbia University, a one-cent per ounce tax on sugar-laced beverages in the state of New York could save up to $3 billion in health care costs over ten years and could bring in $1 billion annually to the state
2. A two-cent tax per ounce in the state of Illinois could reduce obesity by 18%, save $350 million and bring in over $800 million in tax revenue every year
3. If implemented nationally, the United States could see revenues of $13 billion a year while cutting consumption up to 24%
4. A 20% increase in the price of sugary drinks could result in a 20% decrease in consumption, which could prevent up to 1.5 million Americans from becoming obese and 400,000 from being diagnosed with diabetes, which could save $30 billion
