Proposed candy tax in Massachusetts appears unlikely after House speaker's comments
It doesn't look like Gov. Maura Healey's proposal to remove the sales tax exemption from candy purchases in Massachusetts will be supported by fellow Democrats on Beacon Hill.
According to the State House News Service, House Speaker Ron Mariano suggested at a pharmaceutical conference on Wednesday that the House will not be adopting that measure in Healey's $62 billion budget plan. He also expressed concerns about a proposed tax on prescription drugs and applying tobacco taxes to synthetic nicotine pouches.
"The interesting thing is for some of them, we have a history, and it's not good. We've never supported, I know at least twice we've voted down the sugar tax, so you can extrapolate from that," the speaker said.
Candy tax proposal
Healey's budget proposed changing state law so that candy is no longer considered an "essential" food like fruit, meats and vegetables that are exempt from the 6.25% sales tax.
Massachusetts is one of 11 states that exempt candy from the sales tax. The governor estimated that eliminating the sales tax exemption on candy could have raised $25 million in new revenue.
"All we're doing with candy, to be clear, this isn't about a new tax," Healey said in January. "What this is doing is simply saying when you go to the grocery store, instead of having candy treated like a purchase of bread and eggs and milk, essential groceries, that candy is now going to treated in the same way as when you go to the bakery in the back of the grocery store and pick up cupcakes for your kids."
Prescription drug tax proposal
Healey had also proposed a tax on prescription drugs that would charge pharmacies 6% per prescription or $2, whichever is less. It would have raised $145 million to help pay for the MassHealth program.
Mariano told reporters that he worries that the tax proposals could be bad for Massachusetts.
"It doesn't help," he said. "We're concerned about competitiveness and people residing and staying in Massachusetts, and adding two dollars to a prescription just based on the fact that you have to have a prescription - it was not something we wanted to do. It's the wrong message."
