Proposed bill would add 25¢ per beer for treatment facilities

By Sylvia Schon

Daily Star Staff Writer

BATON ROUGE - A proposed new alcohol tax aims to produce revenue for treating alcoholism, other substance abuse and mental illnesses.

House Bill 135, authored by Rep. Tank Powell, R-Ponchatoula, proposes to tax alcoholic beverages at a rate of about 25 cents a drink. That amounts to $8.45 per liter of liquor, $1.69 per liter of wine and $82.67 per barrel of malt beverage or other low alcoholic content beverages.

Retailers would pay the tax when they buy supplies at the wholesale level.

“The average person may drink three or four beers a week, and this would cost them another dollar,” Powell said. “But when you multiply the number of people who drink in Louisiana, you are talking about millions of dollars that can be used to help those people who are addicted or who have mental disorders through no fault of their own.”

By one estimate Louisiana has 320,000 substance abusers who need help.

The bill is the brainchild of Tangipahoa Parish Coroner Dr. Rick Foster, Powell said.

“This is a war right now, and it is a war we are losing,” Foster said. “You try to do your job as a doctor, and your hands are tied.”

More treatment facilities for the un- or under-insured could help.

“What's out there is not enough,” Foster said.

The idea of taxing alcohol to pay for alcoholism treatment has been a pet project for Foster for some time.

The money raised would be used strictly to build in-patient and outpatient treatment facilities in various areas around the state and help support the LSU hospital system.

Foster has worked with Powell to point out the problems of treating substance abuse in this area and commended Powell for being very “pro mental health.”

As coroner and an emergency room physician, Foster said he has seen first-hand the devastation alcoholism and substance abuse in general brings to individuals, families and communities.

Another facet of the problem is the lack of detoxification facilities, which are different than rehabilitation facilities.

“You cannot be rehabilitated until you are clean of the substance,” Foster explained.

Even jailers don't like to hold substance abusers until they have gone through detox because of the high risks of heart attacks or other severe medical problems than can arise while detox is taking place.

Cigarettes are taxed to help offset the public cost of smoking-related disease, said Dr. Tom Terrell, a licensed mental health counselor with Foster's office.

Alcohol abuse should get similar consideration.

“Why can we be banned from smoking, but we can sit in a restaurant, get drunk as a skunk and go out and kill somebody?” Terrell said.

Who will be against it?

“Everybody,” Foster said.

He noted there has not been a single successful attempt to tax alcohol since 1950 because the alcohol lobby is “very strong,” Foster said.

Rep. Powell is undeterred, though he was approached in Baton Rouge three times Thursday and Friday had seven calls waiting on his desk.

“We're ready for them. We're geared up, and we are doing our homework,” Powell said. “It is creating a lot of excitement. Both positive and negative. Certainly one of the number one needs in our state as far as health care is the lack of availability of facilities and beds for addictive disorders and mental health.”

Powell visited with one of Gov. Kathleen Blanco's top staff members Friday and hopes he can win Blanco's support for the bill.

“We feel that we have a very good chance of passing it. Opposition is strong. But never before has the need and the awareness of the need been so evident,” Powell said.

HB 135 is assigned to the House Judiciary Committee.

www.legis.la.state.us.