According to a recent study published in Health Affairs, a penny-per-ounce tax on soda and sugary beverages would cut consumption by 15% in adults ages 25-64. The researchers from UC San Francisco also found that from 2010 through 2020, the tax would prevent 2.4 million cases of diabetes, 95,000 coronary heart events, 8,000 strokes and 26,000 premature deaths, while saving $17 billion in health expenditures and generating $13 billion annually. But enough of this nanny-state nonsense: we need less regulation of the financial sector! more ›

Forget Big Tobacco (they own too many other companies as it is), Big Food is pumping millions of dollars into scientists so they can obfuscate clear cut research on obesity. The result is an industry that claims that the jury is still out on what exactly causes obesity, so in the meantime have another bag of Funyons. ABC reports the case of Dr. David Allison, a scientist who runs an obesity research center in Alabama and former president of the Obesity Society, who has taken $2.5 million in grants from the food industry, not including "consulting or speaking fees." Allison was one of the scientists who claimed that New York City's law mandating that the calorie count of foods be displayed would cause people to eat more (not true). "Big tobacco, big sugar," one researcher says, "identical in the way they treat scientists." more ›

Last year, former Gov. David Paterson pushed a plan to levy a penny-per-ounce tax on sugary soft drinks in NY State, which was repeatedly rejected by Albany, and finally "killed" by current Gov. Andrew Cuomo. So how much money did Big Soda lobbyists spend to make sure that tax never made it into our supermarkets? more ›

Former state health commissioner Richard Daines was found dead in a barn on his Dutchess County property Saturday, his former press secretary tells City Room. State police found him in the barn, where he had been taking down Christmas decorations. At a press conference this morning, Mayor Bloomberg told reporters that he believed the cause of death was a heart attack, but that has not been officially confirmed. more ›

The latest PSA warning New Yorkers about the side-effects of excessive soda consumption seems a little boring at first. While their last spot skewed zany, with a guy pouring sugar packets into his mouth to emphasize the high sugar content of some beverages, this one starts out showing a day in the life of some random slob who pairs his depressing breakfast, lunch, and dinner with various sugary drinks. Ho-hum. Then an obese man in a motorized wheelchair appears, to demonstrate one possible outcome of such an unhealthy lifestyle. Depressing enough, but where's the shock value? Well, fasten your seat belts for the 18 second mark, when... Well, we won't spoil it, but hopefully all those carbonated beverages have given you got a strong stomach: more ›

Despite previous reports of its demise, is the soda tax really dead? Maybe! Dr. Nirav Shah, confirmed today as the new State Health Commissioner, told reporters that in accordance with Governor Cuomo's pledge to add no-new-taxes there are no plans for a soda and sugary drinks tax... "at this time." So if history is any indication the dread tax will return, phoenix-like, the next time a politician is looking for an easy headline. And no, this doesn't mean the NYC Health Department is going to stop making ads like this. more ›

Governor Paterson's proposal to levy a penny-per-ounce tax on sugary soft drinks has been kicked to the curb repeatedly by lawmakers for more than a year, but the governor just won't take no for an answer. He's put it on the agenda for a special legislative session planned for Wednesday to deal with the 16-weeks-late budget. The soda tax would raise an estimated $815 million a year for the state, but the beverage industry has successfully lobbied against it thus far. Paterson is also pushing a 4% property tax cap and a proposal to sell wine in grocery stores. Larry Schwartz, secretary to the governor, tells the News, "It's time that these bills got to the floor and were voted up or down." more ›

Every week since Albany failed to meet its April 1st budget deadline, Governor Paterson has sent a one-week extender budget over to the legislature, which passes it in a up or down vote (they can't modify it). But lately Paterson's been including controversial items, like the cigarette tax, into these bills, forcing lawmakers to approve it or shut down the government. And next week, Paterson may go through with a "nuclear-option bill," which would include even more of the changes that the lobbyists have worked so hard to stop, like the dreaded soda tax. more ›

After applying jumper cables yesterday to his perpetually pop-blocked plan to levy a penny-per-ounce excise tax on sugary beverages, Governor Paterson's soda tax proposal may already be fizzling out. Paterson had hoped his latest compromise—which would except diet soda and beverages from the tax—would win over beverage industry execs and the legislators riding in their pockets. But a spokesman for Senate Democrats told the Daily News, "While we applaud the effort to reduce health risks, we want to provide New York families with tax relief, not add to their burden." Fun facts: The budget is now 51 days late. The state's got a $9.2 billion budget gap. A soda tax would raise an estimated $815 million. If you wash down Pop Rocks with Pepsi you will explode. more ›

Remember Governor Paterson's defeated plan to raise a billion dollars by levying a penny-per-ounce excise tax on soda and other sugary beverages? It's still in play, despite repeated cash roadblocks thrown up by the beverage industry. What brought it back from the dead this time is a compromise, floated by Paterson, that would exempt diet sodas and bottled water. The new proposal would mean less revenue for the state ($815 million) but it seems to be Paterson's best last hope to wrench that bottle of Fanta from your cold, diabetic hands. Of course, the beverage industry has a thing or two to say about this latest "compromise." more ›

In an attempt to close the budget gap, lawmakers are considering two new plans to raise fees on New Yorkers. The plan proposes raising the fees on buying cars and taking out a mortgage. "These two proposals are being seriously considered by us," Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Martin Dilan told the Daily News. more ›

A proposed tax on sugary beverages is still being pushed by the state Health Commissioner, but one local Assemblyman says that if it passes, the cost of powdered drink mixes such as Kool-Aid, Gatorade and iced tea would nearly double. Because the law would add a "penny per ounce" tax on the total quantity of beverage produced by added sweeteners, an average canister of powdered lemonade could jump in price from $4.19 to $8.03, simply because of how much "drink" it yields. And Assemblyman Michael Benjamin (D-Bronx) says poor people would suffer most. more ›

With state lawmakers unwilling to pass a penny-per-ounce tax on non-diet sodas and other sugary drinks, most people have given up hope that the so-called fat tax will roll into this year's budget. But State Health Commissioner Dr. Richard Daines—whom you may recall from such classic videos as Soda Vs Milk—is holding on to the dream! In a profile in today's Times, Daines goes into "polemical overdrive," in hopes that the tax "might be revived during 11th-hour budget negotiations, when lawmakers are desperate." In Daines's eyes, the issue is just as much about economic disparity as it is about obesity: more ›

When we reported on the State Assembly's proposal to add another dollar tax onto cigarettes, making New York's tax the highest state in the land, some wondered, "Why the F can't politicians stand up to the beverage companies and tax soda a meager $.10?" But standing up doesn't really pay in Albany, where you can just keep your seat by taking big campaign contributions from lobbyists. Today the Daily News looks at how the soda tax sausage got unmade, thanks in no small part to State Senator Jeffrey Klein (D-Bronx/Westchester). more ›

In Albany, Gov. Paterson's slash-happy budget proposal has squeaked by the State Senate. Democrats banded together to pass the $136.2 billion resolution despite earlier objections to its $1.4 billion in cuts to education. All 29 Republicans present (one was out sick) voted it; according to Minority Leader Dean Skelos, Paterson's spending wasn't justified and his budget didn't do enough to restructure state spending. "This is just a sham and a gimmick," he said before his vote. more ›

With a $9.2 billion state deficit on his hands, Gov Paterson says he's "not optimistic at all" about getting a budget out by April 1st. The governor said recently that in order to avoid raising taxes (a proposed tax on sugary beverages like soda doesn't seem like it will succeed) he'll most likely make massive cuts to the school system, health care and government agencies. But some lawmakers say the delay should be attributed not to the tough economy or a ten day break for Passover and Easter, but to Paterson's infamous "laziness." more ›

The latest proposal to levy a penny-per-ounce tax on non-diet sodas and other sugary drinks appears to have fizzled out. New York Governor David Paterson and his health commissioner poured their hearts out to politicians in Albany in support of the tax, which would have generated an estimated $1 billion annually and reduced consumption of the drinks by 15 percent. But Senate lawmakers appear poised to pop Paterson's plan, because a number of Democratic senators are opposed, along with the entire Republican conference. The AP reports that the bill does not have the minimum 32 votes needed for passage, and will most likely fall flat. more ›

As Governor Paterson returns to Albany today to headline a symposium about a revived penny-per-ounce soda tax, he's picked up some more support from Mayor Bloomberg, who's always up for taxing vice. "In these tough economic times, easy fixes to our problems are hard to come by," said Bloomberg during his radio address yesterday. "But the soda tax is a fix that just makes sense. It would save lives. It would cut rising health care costs. And it would keep thousands of teachers and nurses where they belong: in the classrooms and clinics." Bloomberg had supported a tax on sugary soft drinks last year, but backed away after an "enormous outcry." Now, it seems, the time has come. more ›

In NY state, Big Gulps are poised to become the new cigarettes. Health officials say they’re ready to instate a tax on fizzy drinks that contribute to obesity rates; they want to charge an extra cent for every ounce of sugary soda (diet sodas are exempt since they contain no calories). On Monday the city and state health commissioners will meet with Gov. Paterson, who’s previously supported such a tax, to hash out a plan. "This is one good thing we could do during a miserable year in Albany," State Health Commissioner Richard Daines told the Daily News. more ›

A recent non-shocking poll found that a majority of New Yorkers simply don't get why, in the year 2010, we're still living under the boot of Puritans and temperance scolds who want to inconvenience everyone by prohibiting wine sales in supermarkets. By a 58-39 percent majority, voters across the political spectrum support allowing grocery stores to sell wine, according to a Siena Research poll. [pdf] Governor Paterson proposed the change as part of his budget proposal, estimating it could bring in $250 million in taxes, but wine store owners and distributors fear losing business. The poll also found that voters (mostly upstate Republicans) oppose a proposed soda tax by a margin of 59 percent to 38 percent. more ›

Gov. David Paterson unveiled a $134 billion proposed budget today that would impose new taxes on sugary drinks and cigarettes and cut school aid and health care spending by $1.1 billion and $1 billion, respectively. "The mistakes of the past — squandering surpluses, papering over deficits, relying on irresponsible fiscal gimmicks to finance unsustainable spending increases — have led us to a financial breaking point," Paterson said. "There are no more easy answers." more ›

In December, Governor Paterson floated the idea of an 18% tax non-diet soft drinks, as part of a plan to close the $3 billion budget gap and perhaps influence New Yorkers to choose healthier beverages. Then the beverage industry opened up a can of whoop-ass, and Paterson backed off, explaining that "often publicity is as important as legislation." Now, perhaps inspired by a 3 cent tax on soda being considered in Washington, Paterson has revived his own soda tax dreams. more ›

A study published yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine estimates that a national tax of just one penny per ounce on sugary beverages would raise $14.9 billion in its first year, which could help pay for some sweet health care initiatives. Such a tax was floated by Governor Paterson earlier this year, then quickly defeated by the beverage industry. Will the same thing happen here? The health care reform plan from Senator Max Baucus has an estimated cost of $774 billion over 10 years, but includes no mention of a tax on sugary drinks, which some doctors think could lower Americans' soda consumption and ultimately reduce consumers' health problems. But according to some critics, the risk is that the tax it could transform America into a communist-run labor camp! Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent called such a tax "outrageous. I have never seen it work where a government tells people what to eat and what to drink. It if worked, the Soviet Union would still be around." Any patriots out there who want to stop the government from forcing feeding tubes down the throat of every decent, soda-loving American can join the beverage industry's fight at Americans Against Food Taxes. more ›

The Senate Finance Committee is meeting today to hear proposals for how to pay for President Obama's proposed universal health care plan, which is expected to cost $1.2 trillion. One idea is a 3 cent tax on soda and sweetened drinks, which could generate some $24 billion over the next four years. Here in New York, a proposed 18% tax on sugary drinks was dropped by Governor Paterson after pressure from the beverage industry; Susan Neely of the American Beverage Association insists "taxes are not going to teach our children how to have a healthy lifestyle." But Michael Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, is one of the experts appearing before the committee today to push for the soda tax, because, as he puts it, "soda is clearly one of the most harmful products in the food supply, and it's something government should discourage the consumption of." According to the Wall Street Journal, Jacobson also wants the government to "sharply raise taxes on alcohol, move to largely eliminate artificial trans fat from food and move to reduce the sodium content in packaged and restaurant food." more ›