Philadelphia likely to become first major U.S. city with soda tax

Philadelphia's City Council is expected to approve a 1.5 cent-per-ounce tax on sugary and diet drinks Thursday, becoming the first major U.S. city to do so.

Two previous efforts to enact a soda tax in the city failed, but this time, Mayor Jim Kenney told the council the estimated $90 million in new tax revenues would pay for pre-K, community schools, and recreation centers, The Associated Press reports. The beverage industry has spent millions of dollars on a campaign to block the tax, and is expected to sue if it is approved. The only other city in the U.S. to have such a tax is Berkeley, California.

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