Soda Tax Discussions Bubble Up

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Davis City, Calif. (12.5% Latino) city council is bubbling up the idea of a soda tax for the 2016 ballot.

The new one-cent tax per each ounce of sugar-sweetened beverage purchased will be used for city improvements reported a recent article. Health issues associated with sugary beverages are among the reasons for the tax, reasons like childhood obesity and diabetes are of the largest health concerns.

The prevalence of Type 2 diabetes is 1.5 times higher in Latinos than non-Latino white adults, and childhood obesity is a rising concern for Latino kids who are more likely to consume more than one soda a day.

City officials pledged to research what a proposed beverage tax would look like in Davis, as city staff look for possible implications of the tax. City staff have estimated that the sugary beverage tax could bring in up to one million dollars during its first year of implementation. City officials and concerned community members see how the soda tax has been successful in bringing in funds to Berkley.

A concerned mother, Jackie Richardson, stood up in favor of the tax, telling the community that the health of our children is important. However, concerned small business owners also stood up in objection to the tax.

City officials and community members will rejoin discussion and determine which taxes will be on the June ballot in mid-February.