OREGON
A proposed coffee tax to finance education would be controversial in caffeinated Oregon but officials say the idea won’t survive the heat of the legislative roasting process.
The proposal, dubbed House Bill 2875, would assess the sale of coffee beans at five cents per pound at the wholesale level. The money would be funneled into an “alternative education sustainability fund.” No economic analysis has been done but a local newspaper estimated that, if passed, the tax could generate about $2 million annually.
A spokesman for the state’s majority Democratic legislators threw cold coffee on the idea.
“There are 100-plus bills filed in the (state) Revenue Committee and most, like this one, don't rise to the level of even getting a hearing,” said Scott Moore, communications director for the Oregon House Democrats.