Cook County Sweetened Beverage Tax Repealed, Preckwinkle Plans Repercussions

CHICAGO, IL — Cook County residents will be popping bottles of Coca-Cola instead of champagne after the county board voted to repeal the notorious sweetened beverage tax Tuesday. After months of fiery debate —and public comment from more than 100 residents —the repeal was approved by an almost unanimous vote. Commissioners officially confirmed the vote Wednesday.

Many commissioners, including John Daley who had initially approved the repeal changed their minds after blowback from constituents and lost revenue from customers traveling out of the county to get their sweetened beverages and, ultimately, other groceries and services.

During the hours-long public comment portion of the meeting, representatives from Pete's Fresh Market, Costco, and local small businesses also reported notable revenue and customer loss. They noted that these losses in Cook County were met by nearly identical increases in neighboring counties.

American Heart Association reps linked sweetened beverages to chronic illness and shared stories of patients who suffered heart disease and strokes after living with diabetes —and consuming sweetened beverages— for years. "If education alone worked, we wouldn't have things like tobacco taxes," one representative said. Later, the audience applauded when a representative from the Illinois institute of Health addressed reports of a likely repeal and said, "It looks like diabetes is the big winner here. Congratulations."

Before the vote, county commissioners on both sides incited the crowd with fervent statements. Commissioner Richard Boykin, who helped pioneer the repeal, received applause and shouts of support when he said, "Government should not be in the business of telling us what we can and cannot [consume]."

He pointed out that the county should not single out soda when cereals marketed for children are loaded with sugar. "If we're going to go after sugar, let's go after sugar," he said.
Boykin also stressed the importance of educating the public about the health risks of sweetened sodas and of eliminating food deserts to give income insecure communities access to healthier options.

Those in favor of the sweetened beverage tax stuck with their ongoing emotional appeal about public health. The topic of revenue also came up when repeal opponents spoke, an echo of Preckwinkle's recent admission that making money was the The sweetened beverage tax may have fizzled, but this saga is far from over. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle doubled down on her threats to cut jobs from health care.

The tax, which was put into effect on August 2, added a penny per ounce to sweetened beverages like soda, lemonade, tea, energy drinks, and even coffee creamer (I mean, I drink coffee creamer by itself, but who else really does??) Unsweetened diet beverages were also subject to the sweetened beverage tax, point many of the tax's opponents also brought up.

As Preckwinkle braces for growing ire from constituents —and a potential challenge for her seat from Boykin— the county braces for Preckwinkle's next move in this political power play. But at least we can all relax with an ice-cold soda.
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