From the San Francisco Chronicle:
Calling soda the new tobacco, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom will introduce legislation this fall that would charge a fee to retailers that sell sugary beverages.
Newsom would need voter approval to tax individual cans of soda and sugary juice, but only needs approval from the Board of Supervisors to levy a fee on retailers. His legislation would charge grocery stores like Safeway and big-box stores, but would not affect restaurants that serve sodas.
Channeling Copying John, one wonders the difference between taxing individual cans of soda (taxing the buyer) and taxing the retailer (taxing the seller) since "the higher price will create a surplus (excess inventory). The price will fall until the surplus goes away and the new price will be above the original price but below the full-tax-passed-on-to-consumers price."
For a more detailed look at who pays a tax, see our compelling EnvEcon 101 two part series on the burden of a tax.
