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Middlesex supervisors weigh removing $7,500 BPOL tax cap
Summary
County staff presented data showing only a few businesses hit the $7,500 BPOL cap and estimated removing the cap would increase revenue; the Board discussed impacts on contractors and regional comparators before taking no formal action.
Mrs. Diggs explained the current Business, Professional, and Occupational License tax (BPOL) ordinance, saying it “places a $7,500 cap on the amount any business pays in business license tax, regardless of business type or total gross receipts.” She told the Board that removing the cap would require businesses to pay taxes on their full gross receipts at the applicable rate rather than being limited to $7,500.
Staff reviewed 2025 business-license data and provided category-specific examples: contractors (245 businesses) had one business reach the cap and would have paid approximately $8,139 without the cap; business services/other (393 businesses) included four businesses that together paid $30,000 under the cap but would have paid about $54,000 without it; retail had six capped businesses that paid roughly $37,000 under the cap versus an estimated $84,000 without it. Mrs. Diggs emphasized that only a small number of firms in each category are affected and that BPOL receipts fluctuate with gross receipts year to year.
Board members asked how neighboring localities handle BPOL revenue. Mrs. Diggs said Mathews County, King William County and Gloucester County do not impose a BPOL cap; Lancaster County does not impose a BPOL tax; King and Queen County uses a flat-rate structure, and those differences affected whether a direct comparison was made. The county administrator and supervisors did not take a formal vote on removal during the session, leaving the question for future budget deliberations.
