According to the Associated Press, California’s legislature and Governor Jerry Brown have passed bill AB1838 that will ban local taxes on soda for the next 12 years. It follows similar bans recently passed in Arizona and Michigan. Voters in Oregon will decide on a statewide ban in November.
California’s ban is part of a last-minute maneuver to block a beverage industry-backed ballot measure that would make it much harder for cities and counties to raise taxes of any kind. The American Beverage Association said in a statement the legislation is about keeping groceries, including drinks, affordable. Local government officials, terrified by the prospect of having their hands tied on all future tax increases, reluctantly backed the legislation.
Gov. Brown said only a handful of communities are looking to tax soda, but the ballot measure would affect all 482 cities in California. The measure bans any new taxes on groceries including beverages through 2030, but allows four cities in the San Francisco Bay Area to keep soda levies already on the books.