Prepare Yourselves For A 12,675% Tax Increase!

[Sionnach Glic]

Well, just on wine, but that's one hell of an increase!

Proposal Looks To Raise Tax On Wine 12,675%
Tax Would Raise Wine $5 Per Bottle

POSTED: 4:33 pm PDT April 1, 2010
UPDATED: 9:23 am PDT April 2, 2010

MONTEREY, Calif. --
Local wine growers said a proposal in California to tax wine $5 a bottle will kill their business, and the California economy along with it.

The Alcohol-Related Harm and Damage Services Act of 2010 would increase the excise tax on a bottle of wine 12,675 percent. That means the current tax of 4 cents on a bottle would go up to $5.11.

Money from the tax would fund programs that address alcohol-related injuries and damages.

But growers like Jason Smith of Paraiso Vineyards in Soledad said the tax would shut down business.

"This tax is just short-sighted and is not looking at the whole picture," Smith said. "Beyond trying to keep people out of employment (it would) put people out of business."

Smith said that right now the hottest product on the wine market are bottles that cost between $7 to $8 and that adding the $5 tax would result in a drastic drop in wine consumption.

The initiative's backers would need 434,000 signatures by August 23 to put the measure on the ballot.

Some growers and wine lovers said, however, that they would be surprised if California passes a measure that would put a big tax on the state's favorite crop.

"I don't think it's good. It would hurt a lot of business in California, especially growers in Monterey County," said Susan Hartsook, of Salinas. "It would be very detrimental to our economy."

Last month, a proposal by state Rep. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, to put a nickel tax on all alcohol sales in the state failed to win support from his colleagues.

[Tyyr]

Wow...

Well first off the political roots are showing. They claim the tax is to pay for the costs of alcohol related injuries and damages but they levy this on wine? Not exactly the true drunk's drink of choice. But then again it's mostly rich people buying wine while levying this tax on beer and hard liquor might piss off the serfs.

[Mikey]

Attempted band-aid which is destined to be diverted for completely unrelated budget concerns, pure and simple. Patterson is proposing a similar levy on soft drinks in New York, and actually expects people to believe that it will alleviate juvenile obesity.

[sunnyside]

Wow, that's just not very clever. Taxes on something, if it's not produced in the state that's taxing it, can be a source of income.

However if I'm reading that right, this sounds like it'll be a massive kick in the balls to one of the states major industries. That's the sort of thing that actually loses the government money instead of making it.

[Aaron]

Man California is just a centre of budgetary fail isn't it?

[Tyyr]

And yet Florida's governor thinks its a great way to run a state.