Start Date: November 2009

ID #: 66971

Principal Investigator: Chen Zhen, MS, PhD

Co-Principal Investigator: Eric Finkelstein, PhD, MHA

Organization: Research Triangle Institute

Funding Round: Round 4

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Health advocates have increasingly argued for taxes on calorically sweetened beverages. However, there is little empirical research that evaluates the public health and fiscal impacts of such taxes while simultaneously accounting for consumers’ and suppliers’ likely changes in economic behavior in response to a targeted tax. The aim of this study is to use econometric models to examine the effectiveness of select targeted beverage taxes on calorically sweetened beverages in reducing energy intake and determine the best tax strategy for achieving the intended public health and fiscal goals in each of the 50 largest cities/markets across the U.S. A final product of this work will be an electronic toolkit that municipalities can use to calculate the reduction in energy intake and increase in tax revenue based on user-specified tax type and rate and a specific catchment area.

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