OLYMPIA, Wash. — Lawmakers want to slip a secret ingredient into the state budget: Spam.

Along with tax increases on cigarettes and hard liquor, the recently released Senate budget proposal would slap a higher tax on canned meat.

Spam, Vienna sausages, potted ham, chili con carne — no tinned meat would be spared the higher tax rate. While the business tax is paid by the producer, taxes have a way of trickling down the food chain.

One taxpayer was outraged.

‘‘They’re actually raising taxes on poor people who can’t really afford it,’’ said Richard Wilson. ‘‘You know they don’t have much money if they’re eating chili out of a can.’’

‘‘Guess I better stock up on jalapeno chili,’’ said Debbie Culwell, a state employee on her lunch break.

Something must

have clogged the gun

SAN DIEGO — This mugger was left holding a bag he didn’t really want.

Police said they were searching for a gunman who ran up to a woman while she was walking her dog Monday night and grabbed the bag she was holding. It contained poop.

When the gunman discovered what was in it, he threw it down in disgust, pointed his gun at the 32-year-old woman and demanded money, San Diego police detective Gary Hassen said.

He then aimed his .22-caliber semiautomatic at the dog, named Misty, and pulled the trigger twice but the gun didn’t fire, Hassen said. The robber, who was believed to be in his 20s, ran to a waiting small, silver car and fled, police said.

Will it defeat

homelessness?

VICTORIA, British Columbia — Homeless people in British Columbia’s capital city may still be cold, but at least they can now get clean, dry socks.

McGregor Socks, Canada’s largest sock manufacturer, agreed to donate 6,500 pairs of socks after Michael Bloomfield, who runs a local environmental foundation, called the company’s head office in Toronto last fall.

‘‘I just looked on the Internet and said, ‘Who’s the chairman?’’’ said Bloomfield.

‘‘I sent a letter and followed it up with a phone call and just kept (the chairman) on the phone until we had a yes,’’ he said. ‘‘We have people in need here. I appealed to him to help us here.’’ Officials believe there are about 700 permanent homeless people in Victoria and as many as 1,500 at times.