Ohio Supreme Court hears grocery tax case

COLUMBUS (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court hears oral arguments about whether the state’s grocers should have to pay a broad-based business tax on food sales.

The state Constitution prohibits taxes on food, and an appeals court ruled that the Commercial Activities Tax cannot be applied to food sold at wholesalers and grocery stores. The tax is applied to all businesses with a certain level of sales.

The case is coming before the Supreme Court today after Gov. Ted Strickland asked the state’s highest court to review the lower court’s decision.

A ruling in favor of the grocers could blow a hole in state revenue. The tax on grocery store food was expected to generate $188 million a year once fully phased in beginning in 2010.