Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger left the door open to imposing taxes on services like gym memberships, digital subscriptions and dog grooming when asked about the possibility during a recent interview.
“I think every idea, as long as it’s reasonable and makes some amount of sense, should be discussed,” Spanberger told a local ABC affiliate.
“I think there are worthy conversations to be had about what revenue generation looks like into the future as our economy changes in so many ways.”
The comment comes as Spanberger tries to leave the door open to exploring new sources of revenue for Virginia while also fending off accusations from the White House that have painted her as a tax-happy Democrat.
“So sad! She is adding so many taxes: a food and beverage tax, digital services tax, utilities tax and more. People are leaving that would never have even thought of doing so!” Trump said in a post to Truth Social.
“This went from a thriving and powerful place to a commonwealth run by a person who has no concept of low taxes and economic strength.”
Those criticisms stemmed from a handful of bills introduced in the Virginia state legislature that, if implemented, would extend taxes to: storage facilities, counseling, dry cleaning, vehicle repair, website design, data storage and digital subscription storage.
The bills, which were first introduced by lawmakers during the tenure of Spanberger’s predecessor, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, never reached the floor of the General Assembly for a vote before the end of the state’s legislative session on March 14.
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Notably, apart from a bill that will raise the minimum wage incrementally to $15 an hour by 2028, Spanberger has yet to sign off on any new state-based increases — a record she believes Trump is misrepresenting.
“The array of taxes that the president asserts move forward in Virginia is sort of ludicrous,” Spanberger said.
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But Spanberger also noted that she could revisit ways to raise revenue from shifting industries that have changed the tax calculus.
“You used to buy a DVD; there used to be sales tax. Streaming is different. So, I recognize there’s value in having these conversations,” Spanberger said, highlighting one such area of change.
Spanberger said that any decision along those lines would ultimately depend on the specific language of a proposal.
“Whether I would ever sign a bill is wholly dependent on what is actually in the bill and how it is outlined,” Spanberger said.
Spanberger won’t rule out taxes on gym memberships, streaming services: ‘Should be discussed’ 2026 IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2025 2026-05-04 12:26:34 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
