WHAT'S NEXT

  1. Signatures
    1,472 out of 1,500
    Petitioning
    1. Vincent Gray (+ 9 others)
      Petitioning
      close
      • Vincent Gray
      • David Catania
      • Phil Mendelson
      • Kwame Brown
      • Michael Brown
      • Muriel Bowser
      • Harry Thomas
      • Tommy Wells
      • Yvette Alexander
      • Marion Barry
  2. Created By
    Earth Day Network
About this Petition Petition Letter
How We Won

Jun 02, 2010

On June 2, 2010, the D.C. City Council voted unanimously in favor of a soda and beverage tax to fund the D.C. Healthy Schools Act. Thanks to nearly 1,500 emails from Change.org petitioners, all sugar-sweetened beverages and sodas sold in the city will carry a penny-per-ounce tax, the proceeds of which will fund the D.C. Healthy Schools Act. The initiative will create local nutritional standards for schools, add vegetarian and non-dairy school lunch options, and provide more funding for fresh fruits and vegetables in school cafeterias.

For more information on this victory, visit City Council Passes D.C. Healthy Schools Act

 

Victory - June 2, 2010

The D.C. City Council voted unanimously in favor of a soda and beverage tax to fund the D.C. Healthy Schools Act. Thanks to nearly 1,500 emails from Change.org petitioners, all sugar-sweetened beverages will carry a six-percent tax, the proceeds of which will fund the D.C. Healthy Schools Act. The initiative will create local nutritional standards for schools, add vegetarian and non-dairy school lunch options, and provide more funding for fresh fruits and vegetables in school cafeterias.

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The D.C. Healthy Schools Act is a landmark bill that will substantially raise the nutritional standards of school meals, bring fresh, local fruits and vegetables to schools, triple the amount of physical and health education, and create a school gardens program. A penny-per-ounce tax on soda and sugar-sweetened beverages is proposed to fund the D.C. Healthy Schools Act — and provide additional money for local health programs, such as eliminating the District’s “grocery gap.”

Sign the petition to fund healthy and nutritious school meals, more physical activity for students, and expanded health and wellness programs for children.

 

Recent Signatures

Put Healthy Kids Before the Supersized Soda Lobby

Greetings,

43% of D.C. public school students are overweight or obese.

D.C. is poised to reverse this trend. As you know, the D.C. Healthy Schools Act, passed unanimously on May 4. This landmark bill will raise school nutritional standards and improve access to school meals, bring fresh, local fruits and vegetables to our schools, triple the amount of school-based physical activity and health education, and will create a school gardens program.

We urge the Council to fund this groundbreaking legislation by supporting the proposed penny-per-ounce tax on soda and sugar-sweetened beverages. We stand with the 70% of District voters who believe this proposal is the smart and responsible way to fund healthy initiatives in the District while encouraging healthier habits. It is time to place our children’s health above the special interests of the Supersized Soda Lobby.

[Your name]

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