The Laura and John Arnold Foundation donated $500,000 to the city of Philadelphia to fight the beverage industry, which sued after voters passed a soda tax last November, says Philadelphia Business Journal.
“The most recent figures from the Mayor’s Office show the lawsuit has cost $828,000 through the end of November,” which is more than half the $1.6 million that the city has allowed for the case, says the Journal.
“We don’t think the citizens of Philadelphia should be forced to abandon an intervention … that could benefit their city because of litigation,” said Kelli Rhee, executive vice president and chief strategy officer of the Houston-based Arnold Foundation. The foundation contacted the city to help. It has been a leading funder of efforts to pass soda taxes in cities around the country.