By Mark Weyermuller –
Soda pop will get a lot more expensive starting this Saturday, July, 1, 2017.
The Cook County Board under the direction of their president Toni Preckwinkle voted to impose a penny per ounce "beverage tax" on all drinks that contain sugar and/or sugar additives. This includes Coke, Diet Coke, Pepsi, Kool-Aid, Snapple, Lipton Green Tea, Gatorade, and various juice boxes, to name a few. There are over 1000 drinks that will now be taxed more in addition to the local sales tax.
On Tuesday, several hundred people protested the new penny per ounce "beverage tax" which goes in effect this Saturday. They rallied just before noon in front of the The James R. Thompson Center (State of Illinois building) located at 100 W. Randolph Street in the Loop directly across the street from the county building.
The Illinois Retail Merchants Association organized the protest. They filed a lawsuit Tuesday morning asking a judge to declare the tax invalid and issue a temporary injunction to stop the July 1 rollout. Protesters included small grocery store operators, beverage distributors, and Teamsters who deliver many of the beverages to stores. The total price of a two liter bottle of Coke which is often on sale for a dollar will be $1.68.
Many feel this increased tax will cause a serious decline in sales, resulting in job losses. More people will stop drinking pop and perhaps buy it in the collar counties and Indiana. There is no tax on food in Indiana and only 7% on nonfood items, compared to the 10.25% in Chicago. Then add the penny per ounce tax on pop, it doesn't make sense to "buy local" in Chicago. Chicago, Cook County, and Illinois are suffering major declines in population which many blame on high taxes, high cost of living, and poorly run government.
The Cook County Board claims they are imposing the tax to help the health of residents. Most others feel it is a desperate attempt to take more money away from people in the Chicago area. The recent bag tax (7 cents per bag) in Chicago was yet another tax which is costing business in the city. See this recent Illinois Review story: http://illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/2017/05/wheres-weyermuller-frustrated-with-chicagos-bag-tax-.html
All in all, people in the Chicago area which Cook County comprises, are frustrated with all the new taxes. One solution might be lowering the size, scope, and cost of government. This would include less spending, less taxes, less regulation, and less borrowing. Are we not TAXED ENOUGH ALREADY?
Mark Weyermuller is a small business person, real estate professional, and conservative activist in Chicago. He is a citizen journalist and regular contributor to Illinois Review. Mark can be heard weekly on the radio in a "man on the street segment" at 10:31pm as a regular guest on the Stephanie Trussell Show heard Sunday nights 9pm-midnight on WLS 890-AM.
