A Democratic lawmaker in New Mexico wants to tax televisions and video
games to raise funds to fight childhood obesity and improve education in
the state, officials said Friday.
"I have asked our legislative council service to prepare the "Leave No
Child Inside" bill and am hopeful that it will be ready for me to
introduce on Monday," educator-turned-lawmaker Gail Chasey told AFP.
"Leave No Child Inside" -- a play on the federal education initiative "No
Child Left Behind" -- is backed by grassroots environmental group, the
Sierra Club.
"The bill proposes levying a one-percent excise tax on the purchase of
TVs, video games and video game equipment and would create the 'Leave No
Child Inside' fund to receive those revenues," Michael Casaus of the
Sierra Club told AFP.
The author and sponsors of the bill, who include dozens of other
organizations besides the Sierra Club, according to Casaus, expect to
raise four million dollars (three million euros) a year through the tax.
The items that would be taxed have been carefully chosen because of their
links to obesity and poor school performance, the Sierra Club says,
citing medical studies.
Around one-quarter of New Mexico's children are obese or overweight, and
just over half finish high school, said Casaus.
"The goals of the bill are to improve the academic performances of our
kids, to promote a more healthy lifestyle and to provide our children
with outdoor learning experiences, using our state parks and public lands
as classrooms," he said.
According to a study cited by backers of the bill, hands-on, outdoor
study leads to better grades among students, including in mathematics and
science.
Another study has shown a 27-percent improvement in the science test
scores of students who participate in outdoor education programs.
Earlier this week, a high school in the US state of Georgia launched
another unique initiative to boost the math and science grades of
students.
Creekside High School near Atlanta offered students money to attend
remedial classes in the two subjects for 15 weeks and a monetary bonus
for maintaining a "B" grade average afterwards.
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