On August 2, the Cook County Sweetened Beverage Tax took effect, adding a penny-per-ounce tax on the purchase of beverages containing sugar or artificial sweeteners.
With the new sugary drink tax, pop in Chicago is some of the most expensive in the nation, as a $2.49 2-liter bottle of pop now costs $3.49, an effective tax rate of 40 percent. Cook County officials expect the tax to bring in over $200 million a year in revenue to help close a budget gap. But that money is being used to hand out sweetheart deals to unions such as Teamsters Local 700.
After massive pushback from taxpayers, the Cook County Board is voting on Wednesday, Sept. 13 to repeal the notorious sugary drink tax.
If just one Cook County commissioner flips his or her vote, the sugary drink tax repeal heads to the desk of Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. And if three commissioners flip their votes, that will be enough to eliminate the pop tax regardless of Preckwinkle’s veto power.
The Beverage Tax has had implementation problems and is proving to be massively unpopular. Residents can’t afford to keep this unfair tax hike in place. Chicagoans in particular already face a higher tax and fee burden than residents of any other Illinois city.
Sign the petition today to tell your commissioner to repeal the pop tax.