Acton Institute Powerblog Archives

Post Tagged 'sin tax'

November 06, 2020

Victories for liberty: 2020 state ballot initiatives

Whatever the outcome of the 2020 presidential race, liberty won numerous victories – and suffered a handful of setbacks – in state referendums nationwide. Voters in both “blue” and “red” states endorsed policies to advance individual initiative, limit government overreach, and establish equal justice under the law. Continue Reading...
January 04, 2019

Is capitalism making us fat?

As workers emerge from the holidays an average of one pound heavier, weight loss tops every list of New Year’s resolutions. Yet in 2019, physicians are asking politicians to classify obesity as a disease to be treated by taxing sugary foods – and some commentators are blaming our penchant for overindulgence on the capitalist system.    Continue Reading...
March 11, 2013

Guns and Ammo as a Taxable ‘Sin’

Need to justify a new sin tax or raise an existing one? Adam J. Hoffer,William F. Shughart II, and Michael D. Thomas recently explained in U.S. News and World Report how it’s done: Claim that consuming some good or engaging in some activity contributes to ill health or harms the environment. Continue Reading...
February 08, 2013

A Rapidly Expanding ‘Sindustry’

As occurrences of preventable diseases increase and the debt deepens, some look to “sin taxes” as an easy to solution to both problems. Thirty-three states have even gone as far as to implement a soda tax in an attempt to curb obesity. Continue Reading...
March 19, 2010

Poll: Thumbs down on the Sin Tax

From “56% Oppose ‘Sin Taxes’ on Junk Food and Soft Drinks” on Rasmussen Reports: Several cities and states, faced with big budget problems, are considering so-called “sin taxes” on things like junk food and soft drinks. Continue Reading...
May 21, 2009

Hate the Sin, Tax the Sinner?

Update (5/21): The New York Daily News reports that “state lawmakers are trying to give the fat tax new life.” Senate Democrats want to impose a penny excise tax on non-diet sodas to help fund a plan to provide property tax relief to homeowners. Continue Reading...
August 11, 2008

Nannyfornia

Writing in the London-based Times, Chris Ayres in “Welcome to Nannyfornia” looks at the “frenzy of puritanical edicts from California’s politicians” that cover a host of sins, ranging from transfats to the highly objectionable use of the terms “Mom” and “Dad.” Continue Reading...