Brown is committed to building an economy that works for all of us and ensuring access to quality, affordable health care for every family. It’s time for new leadership in Congress, and that starts here in Eastern Washington with Lisa Brown.īrown is a former state Senator and chancellor of Washington State University Spokane. However, we don’t think that preempting local legislation that taxes sugary drinks is the way to fix it.ĭon’t be fooled by Big Soda’s misleading ads. We’re sympathetic to the concerns of union workers in the beverage industry and we agree that our tax system is upside-down and disproportionately hurts low-income families. In recent years, Republican legislators have sought to use similar legislation to reverse Seattle’s $15 minimum wage and progressive paid sick leave laws in Tacoma and Spokane. Progressive advocates oppose efforts like this to use state laws to prevent localities from taking action that’s right for their communities. The campaign’s highly deceptive ads focus on grocery taxes despite the fact that groceries have been exempt from sales taxes since 1977.
It also has support from some labor unions that represent workers whose jobs could be impacted by soda taxes. I-1634 is backed primarily by millions of dollars from a handful of big soda companies.
Such taxes are aimed at discouraging people from buying sweetened drinks that have been linked to type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and tooth decay. Initiative 1634 would prevent cities and counties in Washington from passing new taxes on sugary beverages.
The oil industry is spending tens of millions of dollars to confuse voters about I-1631 so they can continue polluting for free and raking in record profits. These will look different in every community, from energy efficiency upgrades for our homes and businesses to keeping our forests healthy so they clean our air and investing in cleaner transportation options for more communities.
These investments are a practical first step to ensure clean air and clean water for everyone in Washington. It will create 40,000 jobs by investing in water and forestry projects, energy efficiency, and clean transportation. I-1631 is essential to pass a clean and healthy Washington on to future generations. This initiative will charge our state’s largest corporate polluters a fee that will be used to create local jobs by investing in clean energy, healthy forests, and clean water. Initiative 1631 is our best opportunity to accelerate clean energy solutions and build healthier communities for everyone in Washington.