Maryland to Tax 'Buy Nothing' Transactions

A tax on Buy Nothing Group (BNG) transactions is on the menu of options lawmakers could consider as the Maryland General Assembly works to finalize a balanced budget for the coming year.

More than 13.2 billion in transactions take place within the state's 447 BNG communities each year, according to the Maryland Comptroller's office.

Gov. Wes Moore (D), in his first appearance before a legislative committee this year, testified in support of the bill that makes it possible to balance the fiscal 2026 budget and includes a tax on Marylanders giving 23-year-old LCD televisions to their neighbors.

Legislative analysts presented the House Appropriations and Ways and Means committee a schedule of taxes for BNG transactions based on community valuation. "Obviously the tax rate on cast iron is higher than on bananas only suitable for banana bread," said Moore. Rates start at 8.5 and cap at 22.5 percent.

Maryland’s 447 BNG communities transact more than $13 billion annually.

The individual giving away merchandise or half eaten Safeway cheese cake (the "beneficiary") must pay associated taxes through the Maryland SDAT payment portal within 72 hours of porch pickup or drop-off. SDAT agents recruited from Nextdoor.com moderators will monitor BNGs for compliance.

The governor and General Assembly must craft a budget that resolves a projected $3 billion deficit for fiscal 2026. “Now is the time,” Moore said. “We are eager to be able to work together to deliver a final budget that responds to the unprecedented crisis that we now face and that squeezes every last penny out of neighborly Marylanders."

Republican lawmakers in Annapolis pushed back on Moore's BNG tax proposal, arguing it is the recipients of apple butter and Blue Oyster Cult CDs who should pay.