Rhode Island Rep Proposes a Tax on Violent Video Games

Whenever a tragedy happens like that in Parkland, Florida, recently, video games are often the target of blame. Instead of banning violent video games, this Rhode Island representative proposes we tax them instead.

Before you sharpen your pitchforks, representative Robert Nardolillo plans to make good use of this tax. He suggests that the money brought in from this be directed towards improving mental health and counseling resources for public schools. Nardolillo defends his idea in the following statement.

There is evidence that children exposed to violent video games at a young age tend to act more aggressively than those who are not. This bill would give schools the additional resources needed to help students deal with that aggression in a positive way.

This proposed legislation would tack on an additional 10 percent tax to the price of any video game rated M or above. It would then be deposited into a special account for schools. Nardolillo talks about how he believes this will create a better future.

Our goal is to make every school in Rhode Island a safe and calm place for students to learn. By offering children resources to manage their aggression today, we can ensure a more peaceful tomorrow.

This will also apply to M rated games that aren't violent (Dead or Alive: Extreme Beach Volleyball, for example). Even so, this is an effective way to find funding for better mental health programs. Would you pay $6 more for an M rated game if you knew this is what it was going towards?