I pay 10% tax on soda and junk food. Well, actually I pay 10% tax on all groceries in Birmingham, AL. Whether I'm getting a 12 pack of our wonderful locally produced Buffalo Rock Ginger Ale or a pound of Chilton County peaches, the combined state, county, and city taxes total 10%.
So forgive me if I fail to muster sympathy for opponents of the "soda tax." I'd be thrilled if I had to pay taxes on only soda and junk food. Last time I checked, soda and junk food are discretionary purchases. Milk, bread, cheese, fruits and vegetables, dried legumes, etc. seem to be far more necessary. I can live without Coke and moon pies, but grocery staples are not optional.
Opponents of the soda tax rail against "penalizing people for simple pleasures" or "the government is telling you what to eat or drink." According to that logic, the State of Alabama penalizes its citizens for any caloric intake and apparently doesn't want its citizenry to consume anything. If higher taxes are supposed to be disincentives for certain behaviors, then babies in Alabama are being punished for their mashed peas and carrots. That stuff looks like punishment enough as it is.
There was an attempt earlier this year to repeal the state level 4% grocery tax. To make up the revenue, there was a proposal to phase out the state deduction of Federal income taxes for AGIs (Adjusted Gross Incomes) starting at $75K/single or $125K/joint filers and eliminating the deduction for $200K/single $400K/joint filers. The Republican response was predictable. It is unacceptable to shift any tax burden to the top.
The arguments that bounced around included:
The grocery tax and other sales taxes are the only ones that illegal immigrants pay
If you're really poor, you use food stamps and are therefore tax exempt
If you can't afford food, you can go to a food bank
Food you grow in your yard is free, so you should work a garden instead of complaining
Small business owners will be penalized and we'll lose jobs
Rich folks will move out of Alabama due to higher taxes
Poor people are fat and eat too much anyway
As with last year's "Joe the Plumber" nonsense, it suddenly seemed as though there were an incredible number of individuals and couples in Alabama with a current or potential AGI over $75K and $125K respectively. Of course, just as in the "Joe the Plumber" situation, most folks were arguing against their own best interests in favor of a fantasy or just plain fearmongering.
Where were the folks at Americans Against Food Taxes earlier this year in Alabama when the effort to repeal state level grocery taxes failed? But now that we're talking about special taxes on empty calories, all of a sudden it's a "huge burden on the middle class."
To put the situation here into real numbers: If you buy groceries in Birmingham, Alabama, and manage to feed your family on $200 a month, the grocery tax for one year ($240) is more than your entire monthly grocery bill.
I realize most other states are not as regressive in their tax structures as Alabama, but I wanted to point out that taxes on soda or junk food pale in comparison to being taxed for necessary daily nourishment.