A year after the proposal failed to get out of committee, a bill seeking to impose a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages and use the revenue to provide meals at no cost to all public school students has been raised again in the state legislature.
House Bill 5537 was introduced this week and referred to the legislature’s Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee. The bill was raised by the committee.
It proposes a tax on certain sweetened beverages, syrups and powders sold in Connecticut and dedicates the revenue to a universal free school meals program.
Under the proposal, distributors would pay a tax of 2 cents per fluid ounce on sweetened beverages sold to retailers in the state. The same rate would apply to syrups and powders used to make sweetened drinks, calculated based on the amount of beverage that could be produced from those products. The tax would take effect Oct. 1.
The bill defines sweetened beverages as carbonated or noncarbonated drinks containing added sugar or nonnutritive sweeteners. It would not apply to beverages such as 100% fruit or vegetable juice, milk-based drinks, water, infant formula or certain medical beverages.
Revenue generated by the tax would be deposited into a newly created “universal free school meals account,” which would be used to reimburse local and regional school districts for providing free breakfasts and lunches to all public school students.
The program would begin with the 2027-28 school year and reimburse districts at a per-meal rate set by the state Department of Education.
If the amount of reimbursement requested in a given year is less than the funds available, remaining money could be distributed to districts to support after-school programs, the bill states.
The legislation also requires the state Department of Revenue Services to contract with academic researchers to study the tax’s effects for at least five years, including its effect on beverage prices, consumer behavior, jobs and health outcomes.
The bill revives an idea that has surfaced several times in Connecticut but has yet to gain legislative approval. A similar proposal was introduced in 2025 but did not advance out of committee.
Gov. Ned Lamont included a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in his budget proposal last year as a way to generate revenue and promote public health, but it was not included in the final budget.
Supporters of such “sin” taxes argue they can reduce consumption of high-sugar beverages linked to obesity and chronic disease while generating funding for public programs. Beverage industry groups and some retailers opposed such taxes, arguing last year that they raise consumer prices and could hurt businesses, especially small retailers.
