As a little thing called the Boston Tea Party illustrates, nothing is as deeply ingrained in the American psyche as the urge to protest taxes, both rational and irrational. Back in January, the city of Philadelphia instituted a soda tax that adds a tax of 1.5 cents per ounce to anything ranging from sugary sodas to even some plant-based milks. The tax aims to fund pre-K education, community schools, parks, recreation centers and libraries.
Naturally, the tax was immediately controversial with consumers, retailers and even some legislators immediately questioning the both the tax's functionality and legality. Coca-Cola Co. (KO) and PepsiCo (PEP) have both already reported job losses as a result of declining sales in the city. Pepsi even reportedly stopped shipping 2-Liter versions of its popular beverages to the city.
While a penny and a half doesn't seem like much in the scheme of things, when one of our contributors took a trip to a Philadelphia grocery store, the impact was glaring.
Sorry, Benjamin Franklin, apparently "a penny saved" is now a penny spent on a soda tax.
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