Tag: SSB
-
Pennsylvania’s High Court Declines to Consider SSB Tax
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has denied an application for extraordinary relief filed by several industry groups in an effort to prevent Philadelphia’s 1.5-cent-per-ounce tax on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) from taking effect on January 1, 2017. Williams v. City of Philadelphia, No. 160901452 (Ct. C.P., Philadelphia Cty., order entered November 2, 2016). The one-page order does…
-
WHO Report Advocates Soda Tax to Reduce Obesity
The World Health Organization (WHO) has published an October 2016 report claiming that “taxing sugary drinks can lower consumption and reduce obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay,” according to a concurrent press release. Titled Fiscal Policies for Diet and Prevention of Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs), the report collates information gathered during a May 2015 technical…
-
Beverage Groups Challenge Legal Basis for Philadelphia’s Tax on SSBs
The American Beverage Association, other industry groups, retailers and distributors have filed a lawsuit against the city of Philadelphia challenging its tax on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), arguing the statute unlawfully attempts to circumvent Pennsylvania’s taxation supremacy. Williams v. City of Philadelphia, No. 160901452 (Penn. Ct. C.P., Philadelphia Cty., filed September 14, 2016). The plaintiffs assert…
-
Teens Allegedly Influenced by Soft-Drink Warning Labels
Researchers with the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine’s Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics have authored a study claiming that adolescents are less likely to purchase sugary beverages that carry warning labels. Eric VanEpps and Christina Roberto, “The Influence of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Warnings,” American Journal of Preventive Medicine, September 2016. The study…
-
UK Exchequer Issues Details on Soft Drink Levy, Childhood Obesity Action Plan
Her Majesty’s Treasury (HM Treasury) has released the details of a proposed soft-drink levy announced during March 2016 budget talks as part of the U.K. government’s childhood obesity action plan. Slated to take effect in April 2018, the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL) would affect the manufacturers of added-sugar soft drinks “with total sugar content of 5…
-
WLF Files Amicus Brief Urging Ninth Circuit to Strike San Francisco SSB Warning Law
The Washington Legal Foundation (WLF) has filed an amicus brief with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals arguing the court should enjoin a San Francisco statute requiring advertisements of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) to disclose health warnings related to their consumption. Am. Beverage Assoc. v. City of San Francisco, Nos. 16-16072 and 16-16073 (9th Cir., amicus…
-
Court Delays San Francisco SSB-Warning Enforcement
Following a May 2016 refusal to invalidate a San Francisco regulation requiring warning labels on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), a California court has granted an injunction on enforcement pending appeal. Am. Beverage Ass’n v. City of San Francisco, No. 15-3415 (N.D. Cal., order entered June 7, 2016). Details on the May 2016 decision appear in Issue 605…
-
Philadelphia to Adopt First City-Wide Soda Tax
The Philadelphia City Council Committee of the Whole has backed a 1.5 cents per-ounce tax on sugar-added and artificially sweetened soft drinks, a measure that the council anticipates will raise $91 million over the next year. If approved by final vote as expected, the tax will “fund quality pre-K expansion, community schools, reinvestment in parks…