Vote today for sugar tax
Election Day is here — at last! We won’t hazard a prediction on how Santa Fe will vote on a sugary-drinks tax to fund prekindergarten for city children. But we are confident that all sides will be glad to put this election behind them.
Unpleasant, divisive and nasty are just a few choice adjectives that have been thrown around to describe the back-andforth of this special election. And who can be surprised? Taxing sodas and other sugary drinks is not just an issue in Santa Fe. The trend to go after such drinks — both for health reasons and as a source of cash for local governments — is happening across the country. More elections in other cities are just around the corner. The stakes are high.
On one hand, the Pre-K for Santa Fe group had contributions from billionaire Michael Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York, who understands the dangers of sugary drinks. His support upsets those who raise the specter of the “nanny state” in laws taxing sugar or regulating drink sizes. After all, a New York billionaire is hardly a “local.”
On the other hand, Big Soda — the corporations that profit from selling cokes and energy drinks — poured money into Santa Fe, looking for a win (other local tax initiatives on sugary drinks have all passed). Even though many local businesses also oppose the tax, the big dollars came from out-of-state interests.
Big Soda wants to stop the trend of taxing their products before people take a soda tax for granted much the way cigarettes are taxed. Santa Fe could be a momentum-shifter. Now, we wait. With only one issue on the special election ballot, it should not take long to determine whether Santa Fe will join such cities as Berkeley and Oakland, Calif., Boulder, Colo., and Philadelphia in taxing sugary drinks. We urge city voters who have not yet cast their ballots to take time and vote. Already, some 7,800 people have cast ballots early, almost as many as the 8,404 people who voted in the last city special election. It’s clear that this special election could set records. That’s a good thing.
The more citizens who weigh in, the more likelihood of election results actually reflecting the will of the people — and that’s important when seeking both to enact a tax and to expand pre-K. (The election features voter convenience centers, meaning voters can choose where to cast ballots. Voting will take place at Montezuma Lodge, St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, St. John’s United Methodist Church, Christian Life Church, Sweeney Elementary School, Southside Branch Library, Kearny Elementary School and the Genoveva Chavez Community Center. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.)
We have made our arguments in favor of this measure: Reducing consumption of sugary drinks and expanding access to preschool are two positives for Santa Fe. Such a tax is not the action of a nanny state; it is the smart use of tax policy to influence behavior, which worked with taxing cigarettes and will work again with sugar. It’s just as smart to direct those tax dollars to where they can do great good, in this case, helping children succeed.
But as of today, the only opinions that matter are those of voters. Get out and vote, so that the people of Santa Fe’s wishes are heard.