Res 0074-2014

By Council Members Williams and Rosenthal Whereas, New York State is facing an obesity epidemic; and Whereas, New York City is facing the same challenge, as the majority of New Yorkers are overweight or obese, and four out of ten elementary school children also fall under this category, according to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH); and Whereas, Reports indicate that the obesity rates are even higher in low-income communities, where seven out of ten residents are either overweight or obese; and Whereas, The health consequences from obesity can include serious conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, and kidney failure; and Whereas, According to the DOHMH, the biggest contributor to obesity is the sugar that people consume; and Whereas, The DOHMH has indicated that Americans consume 200 to 300 more calories than they did 30 years ago and half of these calories come from sugar-sweetened beverages; and Whereas, Sugar-sweetened beverages, such as soda, sports drinks, fruit drinks and tea drinks, are a common source of sugar, with some containing 16 teaspoons of added sugar in a 20-ounce serving; and Whereas, The New York State Comptroller estimated that obesity-related illness costs New York State residents $7.6 billion in medical costs every year; and Whereas, In 2010, then-Governor David Paterson and the late State Health Commissioner Dr. Richard Daines proposed a tax of one penny per ounce on sugar-sweetened beverages; and Whereas, Commissioner Daines had indicated that this proposal would generate nearly $1 billion in revenue after being fully phased in; and Whereas, Multiple public health organizations believe that sugar-sweetened beverages are the food category most strongly linked with the rise in obesity; and Whereas, At that time in 2010, the New York Academy of Medicine, the Greater New York Hospital Association, the Healthcare Association of New York State, the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the Commission for the Public's Health System, Community Health Care Association of New York State, the New York Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Medical Society of the State of New York, and the New York State Dental Association all supported the excise tax; and Whereas, Additionally, in a nationwide study conducted at Columbia University Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco, researchers estimated that the imposition of an excise tax on sugar sweetened beverages would result in approximately a 15 percent reduction in consumption and reduce the prevalence of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease; and Whereas, Government must take affirmative steps to stem the tide of the obesity epidemic and the impact that sugar sweetened beverages have on New Yorkers; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature to pass and the Governor to sign legislation that would add an excise tax on sugar sweetened beverages. CP Res 1265/2012 LS 446/2014