One of the reasons beverages taxes are so harmful is the ripple effect they have in communities, particularly on hardworking people trying to make ends meet. Enerolina Melendez, who owns a small grocery store in Philadelphia, says the beverage tax there is hurting her business and her ability to provide for her family.

In an opinion piece published in the Philadelphia Business Journal, Melendez said, “she and her family came to the United States in 1997 from the Dominican Republic to try to build a better life for ourselves and our children.”

Melendez, started the path to the American dream like so many immigrants do, by opening a small neighborhood store, or bodega, in 2006. Her store serves a low-income neighborhood in Philadelphia where there aren’t many options and also helps support her family:

“With the money I make from our grocery store, I am able to pay college tuition for my nieces back in Latin America. Closer to home, I also am able to help provide financial support for my 21-year old daughter to attend college, where she is studying business. And the business provides a job for my 22 year old son.”

The Philadelphia beverage tax, which has raised the prices of thousands of beverages, has put all of this progress in jeopardy, says Melendez. “Since the tax was put into effect in January, sales in my store have plummeted,” she wrote.

Melendez explains that the tax is impacting more than just beverages at her store, which operates on extremely thin margins. “My customers are doing more and more of their shopping in nearby townships, like Bensalem and Cheltenham, where they can save money.”

As a result, Melendez reports that sales are down at her store 40 percent and she has been forced to lay off a worker.

Melendez has a message for Philadelphia leaders which all elected officials should listen to: “We are the back bone of our neighborhoods’ economies. We need elected officials who will listen to our needs and support us – not put more obstacles in our way.”