D.C. Gym Tax Sparks Controversy

Different groups are criticizing the gym tax for including yoga.

Earlier this year the D.C. Council voted in favor of adding a 5.75 percent tax to wellness-related businesses. Gym memberships and health centers are subject to the tax.

The tax does not include studios that are not used for physical activity, but does extend to yoga.

“But the purpose of yoga isn’t exercise. It’s the union of mind, body and spirit,” Richard Karpel, president and CEO of Yoga Alliance in D.C., told The Washington Post.

Do you think that yoga should be covered under the gym tax? Tell us in the comments below!

Karpel argues that the legislation is for physical activity which is not what yoga is used for.

Yoga being covered under the tax is being questioned by a religious leader. Hindus are criticizing the D.C. tax because yoga is a part of Hinduism.

“One of the six systems of orthodox Hindu philosophy whose traces went back to around 2000 BCE,” Hindu statesman Rajan Zed said. “Yoga never had any formal organization and yoga practice has been handed down from one guru to the next.”

Image via Shutterstock