By SANDY CHARLES
Los Alamos

It has been said that a journalist’s duty is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. A good example would be to challenge businesses who sell alcohol to the public, yet “cry wolf” if congress forwards a bill to raise the alcohol tax for the first time in thirty … yes 30! … years. This tax omission does not correlate with the changing sensibilities of Americans over the last three decades surrounding alcohol.

NM House Bill 230 proposes an excise tax increase on alcohol. This bill will be debated in House committee today, Feb. 20. In the proposed bill, these tax proceeds would go toward treatment and recovery of alcohol addiction. We need to contact our legislators now to do the right thing in support of a tax increase on alcohol.

The loss of revenue for businesses cannot be considered a valid argument for prohibiting the increase of tax on it, especially in light of the extreme hazard alcohol presents to New Mexico. This minimal loss is in no way comparable to the statistic showing that New Mexico is the number-one state in our nation for alcohol-related traffic deaths. It is determined that the proposed increase might amount to twenty-five cents per drink, which would not stop social drinkers nor addicted ones from purchasing it.

The answer to New Mexico’s alcohol problem is to address the medical, emotional, and mental health of persons and families with alcohol addiction, as well as providing treatment programs for recovery. As usual, the answer to almost every problem is education.

If the revenue from the tax increase is properly used as stated in the bill, it can help to reduce this fundamental and wide-spread hazard in New Mexico.

CONTACT YOUR SENATORS AND REPS NOW.