Assemblyman Richard Bloom pulled California’s latest soda tax bill before it could come up for a committee vote on Tuesday, reports The Sacramento Bee. Bloom, who has tried eight times in six years to pass a soda tax, said that he still didn’t have enough votes to pass Assembly Bill 2782, which called for adding a 2-cent tax per ounce on sugary drinks.
In 2014, Berkeley became the first city in the country to pass a soda tax, with supporters citing the rise in diabetes and obesity nationwide. But elsewhere in California similar legislation has floundered, in large part because of heavy pressure from the restaurant and beverage industries. “The California Nevada Beverage Association, PepsiCo and Coca-Cola have spent at least $413,000 on lobbying since the start of 2015, according to records filed with the California secretary of state. The industry spent nearly $500,000 on campaign contributions during the last election cycle,” says the Bee.