Two Ohio lawmakers want to eliminate sales taxes from YMCA memberships.
Rep. Jim Buchy of Greenville and Sen. Bill Beagle of Tipp City, both Republicans, have introduced bills to exempt from sales and use taxes memberships to gyms and other recreational facilities operated by nonprofits.
Under current law, sales tax is charged on a host of services, including on physical fitness facility services and recreational and sports clubs. Anyone who pays a membership, initiation or monthly minimum charge at a health spa, athletic club or gym — or at a golf, country or boating club — pays the state’s 5.75 percent sales tax, along with the local county sales tax.
In some counties, that could be as much as 8.75 percent.
House Bill 334 and Senate Bill 211 contain the same language. The House bill has 28 co-sponsors; the Senate bill has 10. so far.
“With more than one-quarter of the state representatives signed onto this bill as co-sponsors it appears that there is broad bi-partisan support to have the bill given consideration in the legislative process,” Buchy said in an email. “This is good public policy because providing healthy options to Ohioans should be a focus for state government.”
Buchy said lawmakers have discussed the change for about a year.
Maggie Thurber ([email protected]) is a contributor to Ohio Watchdog. An earlier version of this article appeared at http://watchdog.org/239893/ymca-ohio-sales-tax/. Used with permission.
