City Council to weigh new tax on sugary drinks

Local News City Council to weigh new tax on sugary drinks A tax on sugary drinks could fund important programs and improve public health, but critics argue it could harm small businesses and people already struggling financially. Boston City Council members will explore the idea of imposing new taxes on sodas and other sugary drinks. Jeff Chiu/Associated Press
Boston City Council will soon debate the feasibility of imposing new taxes on sugary drinks. This would includes many sodas, fruit drinks, sports drinks, energy drinks, and sweetened coffee drinks.
Councilor Sharon Durkan filed a hearing order this week calling for councilors to hear from experts and investigate how a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages, or SSBs, would be implemented. She outlined her argument in a Substack post last weekend.
In Boston, a 1% or 2% per-ounce tax on SSBs could prevent more than 6,000 cases of obesity, reduce diabetes by 9%, and save more than $90 million in healthcare costs over the first decade of implementation, Durkan said during Wednesday’s meeting. It would generate about $20 million to $30 million for the city annually, money that Durkan calls “transformational.”
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“This is not just a policy to regulate sugary drinks. This is a step towards a healthier, more equitable Boston,” Durkan said.
Councilors Gabriela Coletta Zapata, Henry Santana, Ben Weber, Brian Worrell, and Ruthzee Louijeune added their names to the hearing order during Wednesday’s meeting. It was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, which will hold a hearing at a future date. Any resulting home rule petition would need to clear Beacon Hill if it were eventually passed by City Council.
SSBs are the single largest source of calories and added sugar in American diets, according to Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health. In addition to weight gain, routine consumption of these drinks can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, liver cancer, and the overall likelihood of premature death.
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Cities across the country have imposed SSB taxes, including Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boulder, Oakland, and Seattle. A recent study from the University of California, Berkeley found a direct correlation between SSB tax implementation and a decrease in SSB purchases. Retail prices of SSBs increased by 33.1% over the two years following implementation, while SSB purchases decreased by 33% in the same timeframe.
Not only would a drop in sugary drink consumption improve public health, but the money from an SSB tax could be used to double down on those benefits through things like food literacy programs that teach people how to cook healthy meals and improved recreational spaces. Some of the money could also be allocated to the city’s general fund and help Boston build infrastructure, housing, and improve education, Durkan wrote.
Any effort to pass a home rule petition will likely have to overcome stiff resistance. Councilor Ed Flynn said Wednesday that he had spoken with members of Teamsters Local 25 who are “clearly opposed” to the idea. He said that small businesses and residents are already hurting due to difficult economic conditions.
“During challenging times, it’s not the right time to add more taxes. We need to support residents and not hit them with as many taxes as we have been. We need to be fiscally disciplined and fiscally responsible,” Flynn said.
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Councilor Julia Mejia said she was “excited” by the hearing order, but cautioned that councilors need to keep in mind that many people of color and low-income residents already “feel under attack” by the government telling them what they can eat and drink. She also mentioned the potential for an SSB tax to harm small businesses.
Durkan, despite her advocacy, stressed that the process should not be rushed and that councilors need to hear from a wide variety of stakeholders. She also addressed some of the concerns about SSB taxes in her Substack post.
“Critics of SSBTs argue that they are regressive, disproportionately impacting low-income families. But the evidence suggests that these are the same communities that bear the greatest burden of chronic diseases and would benefit the most from the health initiatives funded by the tax,” Durkan wrote.
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Ross Cristantiello Staff Writer Ross Cristantiello, a general assignment news reporter for Boston.com since 2022, covers local politics, crime, the environment, and more.