I don't have an answer to your question, but my favorite (cynical) example of this phenomenon is the Johnstown Flood Tax on all alcohol sold in Pennsylvania (se

I don't have an answer to your question, but my favorite (cynical) example of this phenomenon is the Johnstown Flood Tax on all alcohol sold in Pennsylvania (set at 18%). The tax was originally meant to help the town recover. The flood was in... 1936.