What's currently a 2-cent tax on beer could be 30-cents if one zealous freshman San Jose politician gets his way in the state assembly (that means that a barrel of beer would go from $6.40 to $89, and that's just the tax). Democrat Assemblyman Jim Beall introduced the idea on Thursday saying that it "would generate $2 billion a year to fund health care services, crime prevention and programs to prevent underage drinking and addiction,"......

Fun froo-froo drinks like Smirnoff Ice, Seagram's Coolers, Bacardi Silver and Mike's Hard Lemonade got a vote of approval in the form of a $3.10 per gallon tax (from 2-cents for a 12 oz. bottle to 31-cents), raising the price of six-pack malt liquors near $2.00. The proposed tax increase is due to reclassification of "alcopops" from beer to distilled spirits. The process for the increased tax could take a year to complete. Interestingly......