Father vows to lower “dad tax” when preparing his toddler’s meal

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (FTN) – A Terre Haute dad has vowed to lower the “dad tax” after he says he’s “totally for real going on a diet.”

The policy decision was announced on Sunday at a press conference.

Here’s how the dad tax works.

When father Chris Essex makes food for his two-year-old son, he skims a little off the top. For example, if Essex is making his son French bread pizza, he will cut the crispy end part off for himself and eat it.

“I devised the dad tax when I would start cooking something for him, and it looked or smelled really good,” Essex said. “It makes me happy…and he practically didn’t even notice the difference.”

Critics of the tax say he taking food from his child’s mouth.

“Taking food? No. Absolutely not. Have you seen that kid? He’s the size of a five-year-old. He eats just fine,” Essex said.

The decision to lower the tax came when Essex just started adding food for himself into his son’s meal prep.

“So, if he was having chicken nuggets and goldfish, for example, I would make like five extra nuggets for myself. I considered that straight up theft, and decided it was time for a change,” Essex told us.

He also says he needs to lose weight, and chicken nuggets won’t help him do that.

“It’s just hard because his food is his food. My food is his food. So, at the end of the day…he is actually the one taxing me.”

Changes in policy went into effect on Sunday.

“I had a little bit of his French bread. But it was far less than usual.”