No Drink Tax

The Oregon Legislature would be wrong to raise taxes on beer.

Increasing alcohol taxes costs jobs and disproportionally hurts those who are least able to pay them ("Beer-tax boost tied to treatment," Feb. 24).

According to the Tax Foundation, individuals earning less than $20,000 per year face federal alcohol tax burdens that are more than 18 times higher than individuals making in excess of $200,000.

Not only are hospitality taxes on wine, beer, and spirits regressive, they also contribute to job loss: after the federal government doubled the beer tax in 1991, approximately 60,000 Americans in the brewing, distributing, and retailing industries lost their jobs from a shrunken industry.

Too often, hospitality taxes are treated like an ATM to generate extra revenue to make up for wasteful government spending.

As Americans struggle through tough economic conditions, Oregon could not pick a worse time to increase taxes.

— Sarah Longwell, managing director, American Beverage Institute, Washington, D.C.