SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- A bid to fight obesity through taxing sweetened drinks failed May 27 as an Illinois House committee rejected a plan that would have charged a penny more per ounce on sweetened beverages, making a two-liter bottle of soda cost about 67 cents more than its artificially sweetened, zero-calorie counterpart, reported The Chicago Sun-Times.
The measure failed by a two-to-seven vote, the report said.
State Representative Robyn Gabel (D), the sponsor of the sugary drinks tax, said the difference in cost was necessary because it incentivized choosing the healthier drink. "Obesity is epidemic in Illinois; I think we all know that and it's actually epidemic in the country on whole," she told the newspaper. "This is an act to try to reverse this trend and improve the health in our state."
Gabel said the easiest way to reduce people's sugar intake is to target its largest source of sugar--sugar-sweetened beverages like soft drinks, sweet teas, energy drinks and sports drinks--which she said can be linked to diabetes, certain cancers and obesity. Gabel hoped the change in cost would prompt people to choose a healthier option at the supermarket.
The estimated $600 million raised from the tax would have gone to obesity-prevention initiatives like physical education, healthier food in schools, child care centers or bike and walking paths.
But Mark Denzler, from the Illinois Manufacturers' Association, said House Bill 397 concerned beverage retailers because the estimated drop in consumption would result in a loss of jobs. He said the tax would furthermore send Illinois residents to a neighboring state for their groceries.
"Consumers can vote with their feet," Denzler told the Sun-Times. "So if you raise the tax--and this is a tax increase of $ 2.88 on a case of soda--you would see Illinois consumers not necessarily changing their pattern of what they buy but changing where they buy. They'll go across the border to Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa or Missouri."
Click here to view the full Sun-Times report.
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