Tax Maine water?

Supporters of the proposed tax believe Maine should get a cut from water bottling companies selling Maine water. This tax would be 3 cents per 20 ounce bottle. As written, this proposed tax seems to be mainly targeting one company: Poland Spring Water. It does not seem to be targeting Pepsi, Coke or the many breweries in the state. It seems to me an abuse of the citizen’s referendum process to target a tax increase based on how Poland Spring decides to market its water.

If they put sugar and coloring in it and call it Coke, or make beer with it, the tax would not apply. Supporters of the tax believe that Poland Spring can pass the cost to the customer. Based on the Oct. 14 related article, this tax would cost Poland Spring $150 million. Poland Spring earns only $60 million, not enough to pay for the tax, even if they used all their earnings. If Poland Spring can simply add the 3 cents to each bottle to make another $150 million dollars, don’t you think they would have done so by now and make more profit? There is too much competition for that.

Poland Spring supplies many good paying jobs, with all its employees and the company paying taxes. If this industry is taxed out of existence in Maine and jobs are lost, who will get the blame? Probably the president of the United States. But who would deserve the blame? All of us.

Bruce Tremblay, Minot