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Would you eat less junk food if it
costs a little bit more? Starting on July 1, the Navajo Nation
will charge a 2% tax (税) on junk food sold
on its reservation (保留地)- the first tax of
its kind in America. The change is part of the Healthy Dine Nation Act, which the tribe's
president Ben Shelly approved last November. The law will also the current 5%
sales tax on healthy food from fresh fruits and vegetables.
Denisa Livingston
from the Dine Community Advocacy Alliance, a group that
helped pass this law, hopes to make
people in the community more aware of their food choices. "This is a
friendly awareness tax, "she said.
In a press release, Livingston said
that by the law, they want to
improve the health of its population, which inhabits a
27, 000-square-mile
reservation from Arizona and New Mexico to Utah.
Approximately 24, 600 Navajo tribe
members face obesity, according to the
Navajo Area Indian Health Service. Type 2 diabetes has emerged as a growing
public health concern affecting up to 60% of reservation residents in some
areas.
Livingston says
that the Navajo Nation's status (身份)as a food desert
contributes to the health problems the people face. A food desert is an area
where fresh, healthy food is
expensive and hard to find. Food deserts are especially common in low-income
communities, such as the Navajo
Nation, where 38% of the
population lives at the poverty level.
The money that the
government collects from junk food taxes will be put towards projects that
encourage people to eat healthy food from community vegetable gardens, greenhouses, and farmers'
markets. "This is going to open the door to more opportunities and
conversations and ideas about how we move to a food oasis (绿洲) where everyone
has access to healthy food, " Livingston
said, "Whether
you're deep in the reservation or the neighboring towns, you will have the
availability of healthy food. "
(1)
What does the underlined word "eliminate" in paragraph 1 mean?
A . Increase.
B . Admit.
C . Explain.
D . Remove.
(2)
What is the purpose of passing the law?
A . To earn much money.
B . To correct the tax policy.
C . To make the people healthier.
D . To make the reservation popular.
(3)
Why is Navajo Nation called a food desert?
A . Its tax on food is very heavy.
B . There is a lack of healthy food.
C . It is an area far away from towns.
D . Most of the people have a poor life.
(4)
What message can we find in the last paragraph?
A . Doing is better than saying.
B . Where there is a will there is a way.
C . The longest journey begins with the first step.
D . What's taken from the people is used for the people.
答案: D
C
B
D