William Sorrell said imposing an excise tax on certain sodas, sweetened iced teas, sports drinks, energy drinks and flavored waters could cut Vermont residents' consumption of them by 20% and have the dual benefit of raising $30 million annually, according to a report in the Burlington Free Press.
The proposed tax wouldn't apply to fruit juice, diet sodas [image-nocss] or straight water, he said.
Under a Vermont Healthy Weight Initiative he unveiled Wednesday, half of the money raised by the tax would be used to beef up efforts to improve Vermont residents' eating habits.
"I have no doubt that this is going to be a hotly contested issue," he said. "But I welcome that discussion because of the nature of the problem that this is intending to address."
Sorrell said in a press release that obesity is "rapidly overcoming tobacco addiction as the greatest avoidable public-health problem facing our state and our nation."
The Beverage Association of Vermont, however, said "demonizing" sugary drinks isn't the way to combat obesity, and said there's no evidence to support the idea that a beverage tax would. "They're targeting the wrong area," lobbyist Andrew MacLean, representing the Beverage Association, told the newspaper.
Rep. Alison Clarkson (D), a member of the State House Ways and Means Committee, said health-care issues resulting from obesity are one of the problems the state is trying to curb.
"It has a lot of merit, and I think we have to look at it holistically, along with whatever our health-care recommendations are going to be," she told the newspaper. "It needs to be looked at comprehensively, and if we're going to continue with health-care reform, we need to figure out a way to fund it."
Sen. Richard Sears (D) said taxing food and beverages isn't the answer to combating obesity and will drive Vermont residents to neighboring states to buy the products.
"Education and outreach, not a regressive tax in the midst of our deepest recession since World War II, is the best way to encourage Vermont consumers to make healthy food choices," he said.
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