While Fairfax County officials are exploring new sources of revenue, a campaign has emerged against a possible tax on prepared meals.

Although many Northern Virginia communities already have a food tax, a nonprofit organization called Fairfax Families and Workers Against the Food Tax, which was publicly launched last week, argues that the tax would be unpopular with Fairfax County residents, who have already narrowly rejected the idea twice at the ballot box.

“Whether a business owner makes ends meet or has to close often depends on small fluctuations in customer traffic,” said Duk Man Kim, owner of Jang Won Restaurant in Annandale, in a statement. “The fact that the county has to increase the price of the customer’s bill because it imposes this tax will make that task even more difficult.”

Fairfax County voters rejected a proposed 4 percent meal tax by a 56 percent to 44 percent margin in November 2016, but the Virginia General Assembly passed a law in 2020 giving counties the authority to impose a meal tax of up to 6 percent without a referendum.

The tax is currently an option being considered primarily to provide more money for local schools, Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay told FFXnow. Funding gaps have led to an increase in property taxes, which are currently Fairfax County’s main source of revenue.

“We’re trying to find a way to take the pressure off the housing market,” McKay said. “We need to raise awareness among the community about the appalling underfunding of public education, which is why we need additional revenue, and we’re trying to have a reasonable conversation with people about how to raise that revenue in a fair way.”

The council voted 9-1 in May to direct the county executive’s office to identify potential sources of revenue for the county. A meals tax was mentioned as a possible option, but not the only one.

However, the local restaurant industry is proactively preparing for a fight. According to WTOP, around 100 restaurant owners are participating in the new “Stop the Food Tax” campaign, which now also has a website.

Fairfax Families and Workers Against the Food Tax says it is a nonprofit organization “composed of restaurant owners, their teams and the general public,” including the Virginia Restaurant, Lodging and Travel Association, an advocacy group for the state’s restaurant industry.

County Commissioner Bryan Hill is scheduled to recommend revenue opportunities to the board on September 17.

“Not every action we take has a poll that tells us it’s the right action, but every four years there’s a poll, and that’s about who you put in office to make those kinds of decisions for you on a daily basis,” McKay said. “…I make the decisions that I need to make, and I think my colleagues on the board make the decisions that they need to make, based on all the community feedback that they get, as well as what’s in the best interest of the county and the communities that we represent.”