The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to hear argument on whether the nation's first sweetened-beverage tax stands up to legal scrutiny.

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney's most headline-grabbing legislative effort, colloquially known as the soda tax, will be examined by the state's justices to determine whether it violates Pennsylvania's Sterling Act, which prohibits Philadelphia from imposing a tax on a transaction or subject that the state already taxes, according to the court's order issued Tuesday.