Students might want to let their cups runneth over at the soda fountain while they can, as the continued presence of sugary beverages at University of Colorado dining halls might be short-lived.
Boulder's new soda tax, a 2-cents-per-ounce levy on distributors of drinks with at least five grams of added sugar per 12 ounces, has been causing consternation around Boulder with businesses begging for exemptions.
During a Tuesday City Council meeting, one such institution — CU — came before the council to ask for a time extension to adapt to the tax, admitting they just now realized it would impact them — and one CU official said the tax may cause them to "eliminate them altogether."
"It was certainly our mistake to assume that we wouldn't be getting the extra price from the vendor," said Kambiz Khalili, associate vice chancellor for student support and auxiliary services.
University officials were under the impression that because they were a state entity, the city tax wouldn't apply to them. But once CU got wind the tax actually goes through a vendor, and the vendor raises the price and sells it back to the university, officials realized they weren't ready to deal with this change in the next school year.
Source: www.dailycamera.com