Seattle City Council

After passing a $15 minimum wage intended to help low-income workers in Seattle, economists at the University of Washington produced a rather extensive research report a few weeks ago highlighting how the legislation was actually doing the exact opposite as companies were simply choosing to automate menial tasks, move businesses out of Seattle in search of more attractive wages rates or simply cutting back on employees to offset increased labor costs (we covered the study here: Seattle Min Wage Hikes Crushing The Poor: 6,700 Jobs Lost, Annual Wages Down $1,500 - UofW Study).

Following in the footsteps of Boulder, Philadelphia, Oakland and San Francisco, Seattle has approved its own version of a job-killing soda tax.

In a 7-1 vote with one councilmember absent, the Seattle City Council passed the tax on soda distributors by an overwhelming margin. The council ultimately agreed on a tax rate of $1.75 per ounce, which translates to about $1.18 for a 2-litre bottle of soda. Unless opponents of the measure succeed in blocking it, the tax will be collected beginning next year, the Seattle Times reported.