I was looking at a grocery receipt, and there are three different tax rates depending on the items. The receipt doesn’t even specify which items are taxed at which rate - just the total at each percentage.
I understand the goal of lower or higher taxes on groceries is to incentivize purchasing healthier options over more processed foods, but does it really affect purchasing decisions when the final price of the items is opaque to the consumer?
I agree it’s dumb, but I’m also trying to understand how politicians think changing the tax rate for healthier or less healthy foods can possibly affect behavior in the USA when it’s set up this way in stores
There’s some evidence it somehow works https://publichealth.berkeley.edu/news-media/research-highlights/do-soda-taxes-work
But I’ve never known what I’ll be taxed on a specific item
That’s what’s so dumb with it! As I said, in EU you see the final price, including tax. So “healthier option” with lower tax would instantly be seen as cheaper than “unhealty” one with heftier tax. This way it could actually work.