State Senate Committee Advances 1.5 Percent Grocery Tax Cut for Virginians, Leaves Local One Percent Intact

The Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee (SFAC) advanced a bill that would eliminate the state sales and use tax of 1.5 percent on groceries and personal hygiene products. In its Thursday meeting, the committee combined Senator Jennifer Boysko’s (D-Fairfax) SB 451, focused on the hygiene products, with bills from Senator Stephen Newman (R-Bedford), Senator Ryan McDougle (R-Hanover), and Senator Bill DeSteph (R-Virginia Beach) that included all groceries.

In a Tuesday SFAC meeting, McDougle said that legislators had had extensive discussion over how to deal with the tax, noting that the grocery tax is regressive.

“Everybody has to spend money on groceries, but a higher percentage of your income comes if you are lower income. Madame Chairman, I think we all took somewhat of a different approach in how we got there,” McDougle said. “But regardless, I think everybody was in agreement that we need to do something in order to address this and we are certainly behind many other states in addressing the grocery tax, which is one of the most regressive taxes we have,” McDougle said…. (Excerpt from the Virginia Star)