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Costco Manager Shows Just How Ridiculous New Seattle Sugar Tax Is

By Michelle Toomey January 7, 2018 at 1:01pm

An absurd new tax on sugary drinks in Seattle has residents confused and upset.

According to KING-TV, the ordinance placed a 1.75 cent an ounce tax on sugary drinks in order to encourage “healthy eating.”

That tax applies to all soda and energy drinks as well as sports drinks and juices.

The Seattle Times reported that this “healthy eating initiative” is expected to bring in $15 million a year for the city.

But not a lot of the money is actually slotted to go for eating. According to the Times, about $400,000 is set to go for vouchers to a city food program to encourage locally grown produce called Fresh Bucks, while about $1.5 million is expected to go to adminsitrative costs to handle the Fresh Bucks program.

Another $6 million is set to go to various education and mentoring programs (liberals love spending money on education and mentoring programs). The city is planning to spend $500,000 to help workers who lose their jobs because of the tax, cruel irony. In even crueler irony, it’s spending $1 million to administer the tax.

It’s the kind of idea that could only make a liberal happy.

In the meantime, customers are already noticing the steep increase in soda prices and they’re not happy about it — at all.

CBS News Digital Content Manager Tim Williams posted pictures on Twitter to show the gravity of the situation.

Take a look. You can see that the tax has nearly doubled the price of a 12 pack of soda.

ARE YOU KIDDING?!?! Check out these prices at Costco now that the Soda and #SugarTax has taken affect in the Seattle area. 1.75 cents per fluid ounce. Pics @DevinSenaUI & @HaydenBedsole pic.twitter.com/RcsPY4e8L4

— Tim Williams (@realtimwilliams) January 6, 2018

In the case of the Gatorade bottles, the Costco price is $15.99 while the tax is a whopping $10.34.

But here’s the really beautiful response.

At one Costco location in Seattle, the manager actually made a sign to remind customers that the sugary drink tax does not apply to stores outside the city.

In other words, a business located in the city of Seattle is directing customers to shop outside of the city of Seattle in order to deprive the city of Seattle tax money. Check it out here:

Holy sugary drink tax! Finally saw this w/ my own eyes. $10.34 of tax on a pack of Gatorade @Costco in #Seattle. 💸

Costco also reminding you hey – no tax on this outside the city. Thoughts?? @KIRO7Seattle pic.twitter.com/xN2C4Csoe7

— Deedee Sun (@DeedeeKIRO7) January 5, 2018

Does anyone think customers aren’t going to get the idea pretty quick? And take their shopping outside city limits when they can?

All considered, this new tax appears to be a ploy by the city to increase revenue while pocketing money from city residents. And considering just how high the tax is, it’s a good bet that man y, many Seattle shoppers will take their business — and their tax remittances — elsewhere.

It’s inane and virtually guaranteed to be self-defeating, and if enough people speak out about this tax, perhaps the city will change it.

But based on the city’s liberal leadership, that scenario remains highly unlikely.

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