The story on beverage-tax revenues makes very clear what store owners throughout the city like me already know — when government taxes products that are core to our business, it can lead to higher prices for our customers across the board.
No one reached out to our businesses to understand the long-term impacts of this tax or help stores with the complex implementation, putting the burden of the tax on the backs of the business owners, many of which are independent, family-owned and operated.
Confronted with razor-thin margins, I have had to increase prices across my shelves to stay afloat. I know and understand my customers. When they see increased prices at my store, they have no other choice but shop someplace else, even crossing city lines.
The article mentions the November ballot Initiative 1634. It certainly has my vote. I hope that other cities can learn the painful lesson of the Seattle tax. I-1634 is about preventing taxes like Seattle’s, which not only impact working peoples’ pocketbooks but also threaten local businesses and their jobs, from being repeated throughout the state.
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While some may be happy that revenue projections for this tax are exceeding expectations, believe me that small-business owners and our customers who live in low- and middle-income communities have a very different perspective
Prem Singh, Seattle