lester1/2jr
10-25-2010, 04:47 PM
I've lived here my whole life so I'm not fronting
Saving Lives by Taxing Alcohol (http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2010/10/24/saving_lives_by_taxing_alcohol/)
Imagine having to read stuff like this in your local papers Op ED
That November ballot initiative would eliminate the Massachusetts sales tax that was extended to alcohol last year. The initiative is being pushed by the liquor store lobby, which moans that the 6.25 percent sales tax is killing business, particularly along the New Hampshire border. But just as restaurant and bar owners once cried that smoking bans would shutter their doors, the liquor lobby is making claims that, at least for now, are not proving true.
Anyway, even if the tax does somewhat reduce alcohol sales over time, the benefits to society could be significant. :rolleyes: *
According to the state Department of Revenue, the tax raised $97 million in fiscal year 2010. It is projected to rise to $110 million in fiscal year 2011. Already, in the first quarter of the new fiscal 2011, the sales tax brought in $33.2 million, $4 million more than what was projected. Furthermore, already existing excise taxes on alcohol showed only a tiny drop between fiscal 2009 and fiscal 2010, from $72 million to $71 million. This suggests that sales of alcohol at liquor stores have not substantially declined.
*He's not kidding there.
sales haven't dropped much probably because people are cutting OTHER purchases because THEY LOVE TO DRINK
Meanwhile, the sales tax on liquor has notable benefits. First, it is dedicated to state substance abuse programs
that just started a few months ago when this tax was introduced?
Thus, that case of beer helps keep school health programs afloat.
what do you hate kids, broke alkie ?? :p
Second, to the extent that the tax has discouraged some people from buying alcohol, the effect is likely strongest among underage drinkers. As Botticelli put it, “every analysis says that whenever you raise the price of things like tobacco or alcohol, underage kids are price-sensitive.’’
college kids party with their parents money
A study this month in the American Journal of Public Health found that doubling alcohol taxes results in 35 percent fewer alcohol-related deaths, 11 percent fewer traffic accidents, and other reductions in sexually transmitted diseases, violence, and crime
if we didn't have cars there'd be no car deaths either.
In our defense, the comments are uniformly really negative.
Saving Lives by Taxing Alcohol (http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2010/10/24/saving_lives_by_taxing_alcohol/)
Imagine having to read stuff like this in your local papers Op ED
That November ballot initiative would eliminate the Massachusetts sales tax that was extended to alcohol last year. The initiative is being pushed by the liquor store lobby, which moans that the 6.25 percent sales tax is killing business, particularly along the New Hampshire border. But just as restaurant and bar owners once cried that smoking bans would shutter their doors, the liquor lobby is making claims that, at least for now, are not proving true.
Anyway, even if the tax does somewhat reduce alcohol sales over time, the benefits to society could be significant. :rolleyes: *
According to the state Department of Revenue, the tax raised $97 million in fiscal year 2010. It is projected to rise to $110 million in fiscal year 2011. Already, in the first quarter of the new fiscal 2011, the sales tax brought in $33.2 million, $4 million more than what was projected. Furthermore, already existing excise taxes on alcohol showed only a tiny drop between fiscal 2009 and fiscal 2010, from $72 million to $71 million. This suggests that sales of alcohol at liquor stores have not substantially declined.
*He's not kidding there.
sales haven't dropped much probably because people are cutting OTHER purchases because THEY LOVE TO DRINK
Meanwhile, the sales tax on liquor has notable benefits. First, it is dedicated to state substance abuse programs
that just started a few months ago when this tax was introduced?
Thus, that case of beer helps keep school health programs afloat.
what do you hate kids, broke alkie ?? :p
Second, to the extent that the tax has discouraged some people from buying alcohol, the effect is likely strongest among underage drinkers. As Botticelli put it, “every analysis says that whenever you raise the price of things like tobacco or alcohol, underage kids are price-sensitive.’’
college kids party with their parents money
A study this month in the American Journal of Public Health found that doubling alcohol taxes results in 35 percent fewer alcohol-related deaths, 11 percent fewer traffic accidents, and other reductions in sexually transmitted diseases, violence, and crime
if we didn't have cars there'd be no car deaths either.
In our defense, the comments are uniformly really negative.