Op-Ed: The soda tax is a sugar rush for bad policy

One of the most shared photos I’ve ever seen on social media came from inside a Seattle Costco, and it perfectly captures what’s wrong with Olympia’s latest policy obsession.

On the shelf: a 35-pack of Coke priced at $10.99. Just below it: a line item labeled “City of Seattle Sweetened Beverage Recovery Fee” — $7.35. The tax alone is nearly as much as the soda itself.

That’s not satire. That’s what happens when lawmakers decide that taxing something politically unpopular counts as solving a complex problem…

Story continues

TRENDING NOW

LATEST LOCAL NEWS