PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Philadelphia could soon become the first major U.S. city to adopt a tax on sugary drinks. Mayor Jim Kenney proposed a 3-cent-an-ounce tax on soda and other sugary beverages to pay for universal prekindergarten, community schools and park improvements. The City Council is scheduled to take a key vote Wednesday on what is expected to be a compromise measure. The soda industry has fought the proposal with millions of dollars in advertising. Some critics have said the tax would hit the poor the hardest. The first-term mayor contends the poor would be among its main beneficiaries. Philadelphia has twice failed in the past decade to pass a soda tax. New York and San Francisco have also been unsuccessful. Berkeley, California, was the first U.S. city to approve such a tax.
