THURSDAY, JULY 8, 2010
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A5 Some at Arlington salon grow heated over ‘tan tax’
Health-care law added 10 percent surcharge on indoor bronzing beds
by N.C. Aizenman
The sun hasn’t exactly set on Solar Planet, but anxiety over the fate of the Arlington tanning salon has been running high ever since a “tan tax” took effect last Thursday.
One of the less-publicized measures in the new health-care law, the tax imposes a 10 percent surcharge on the use of ultravio- let indoor tanning beds. Supporters — including the Obama administration, con- gressional Democrats and der- matologists — have argued that the tax will raise an estimated $2.7 billion toward the cost of expanding health coverage to the uninsured, while discourag- ing a practice that increases the risk of skin cancer by as much as threefold in frequent users, ac- cording to scientific research. But outraged owners of tan- ning salons worry that the levy could deal a death blow to an in- dustry already reeling from the recession. “In 26 years of business, this is the worst I’ve seen it,” said Scott Shortnacy, owner of the Arling- ton Solar Planet as well as six other branches in the Washing- ton area. “Normally for people who tan, it’s a part of their life- style. They keep doing it even in a recession. But everybody has been looking for ways to cut back on those areas. . . . Our sales are down 20 to 30 percent.” According to the Indoor Tan-
ning Association, an industry trade group, most of the nation’s 19,000 tanning salons are small businesses that are owned and staffed by women. Shortnacy said all but two of his several dozen employees are women. With business so slow, he opted against hiring the 10 to 15 sea- sonal workers he normally adds during the spring high season. Even the Arlington salon,
Shortnacy’s most successful lo- cation because of its proximity to sun-deprived Pentagon work- ers and Northern Virginia mall shoppers, is suffering. Appoint- ments have dropped from 300 per day, to about 160. How much further the tan tax will drive down those numbers is hard for Shortnacy to predict, however. And the early signs during a recent afternoon at the salon were mixed. Like many customers, Lisa
Haggett, 48, who recently re- tired from the Air Force and tans several times a week, said she made a point of buying her next package of sessions before July 1 so she could avoid the tax. After she’s used up the package,
she said, she may need to cut back. Unlimited monthly passes at the salon run about $50, said Haggett, whose visits have toast- ed her to a medium shade of brown. “This is something that makes me feel good,” Haggett said. “The reality is it’s a luxury. It’s not a need.” Dane Ellington, 49, a health- care consultant whose deep
bronze color spoke to a lifetime of indoor tanning, expressed an- noyance at being singled out. Why not tax people who sun- bathe outdoors? Or binge on cheeseburgers? Or, for that mat- ter, who use Botox injections — which were originally slated to be taxed under the law until a last-minute frenzy of lobbying prompted lawmakers to substi- tute the tan tax.
“I understand that the money [for the health-care overhaul] needs to come from some- where,” Ellington said. “But this doesn’t seem like the appropri- ate place. It’s just silly.” Still, plenty of customers said
they had no quarrels with the tax — particularly those who supported the health-care law in general.
“I know I shouldn’t be tan-
ning, but I do it because it makes me feel better,” said Karie Apicella, 34, a patent examiner whose fair skin had acquired a honey-hued glow. “So I guess I understand the idea behind the tax, and I’m willing to pay it.” “It’s almost like when your parents tell you that you shouldn’t drink and you sort of know it’s true, but you do it any- way,” said a laughing 29-year-
old Marine officer who declined to give her name because she felt sheepish about divulging her tanning habits to those un- der her command. “Some people pay $6 for a
latte because it’s their way of re- laxing or treating themselves,” the officer added. “Well, this is my latte, and I’m not going to stop ordering it.”
aizenmann@washpost.com
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Panel clears scientists in ‘Climate-gate’
by David A. Fahrenthold and Juliet Eilperin
An independent commission in Britain cleared climate- change researchers of charges of academic misconduct Wednes- day, completing an inquiry be- gun after hundreds of e-mails from the scientists were released to the public. The commission, chaired by a
Scottish university administra- tor, was the latest to find no evi- dence that researchers em- broiled in the “Climate-gate” scandal had violated academic standards. After examining e- mails and research from the Uni- versity of East Anglia’s Climatic Research Unit, the commission said, “we find that their rigor and honesty as scientists are not in doubt.” The scandal began last fall, af- ter more than 1,000 e-mails were taken from the unit’s servers. In one, Phil Jones, the unit’s direc- tor, wrote a colleague that he would “hide” a problem with data taken from Siberian tree rings with more accurate local air temperature measurements. In another message, Jones talked about keeping research he disagreed with out of a Unit- ed Nations report. The university also investi-
gated and found “no evidence of any deliberate scientific mal- practice” in the e-mails. Another inquiry, at Pennsylvania State University, examined e-mails sent by Professor Michael Mann, and found that “there is no sub- stance” to allegations that he vi- olated research standards.
fahrenthold@washpost.com eilperinj@washpost.com
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