By Margaret Kates
al.com
(TNS)
A Republican candidate for governor in Florida is looking to institute a so-called “sin tax” of 50% on income generated from OnlyFans, the popular online streaming service known for adult content.
“It is called a ‘sin tax’ because it is a sin, number one, but the purpose of the sin tax in economics is to disincentivize and deter a behavior,” said James Fishback, a far-right gubernatorial candidate, on a podcast, according to People.
Fishback made the comments during a podcast from NXR Studios, a Christian, right-wing podcasting company. He claimed the tax could generate $200 million in a social media post, according to The Hill.
Those funds would supposedly be used to fund “crisis pregnancy centers,” a term given to facilities designed to help pregnant women. These centers have been criticized by medical professionals for using deceptive tactics and discouraging women from seeking out abortions or even contraception.
The money from the ‘sin tax’ would also fund mental health initiatives and education systems, Fishback claimed.
“As Florida governor, I don’t want young women who could otherwise be mothers raising families, rearing children, I don’t want them to be selling their bodies to sick men online,” Fishback said on the podcast. “And I don’t want young, impressionable men who have strayed from Christ, who have strayed from our Lord and Savior to be told, and to be drawn into lust, and have their entire brain rewired.”
Fishback went on to criticize OnlyFans creator Sophie Rain, 21, on social media, calling her “exploited,” and saying she would have to pay $42 million in taxes under his ‘sin tax.’
Rain told People that his proposal was “the dumbest thing [she’s] ever heard of.”
“No one ever forced me to start an OnlyFans, it was MY decision, so I don’t need a 31-year-old man telling me I can’t sell my body online,” she said. “I am a Christian, God knows what I am doing, and I know he is happy with me, that’s the only validation I need.”
Fishback, a hedge fund manager, is considered a longshot for governor. He trails current Republican frontrunner Byron Donalds, who represents Florida’s 19th congressional district, by 34 percentage points, according to WFLA.
But Fishback has been able to garner attention on social media, in part due to an interview with the popular conservative commentator Tucker Carlson. He has espoused extremist and racist views, including supporting the “white genocide” conspiracy, which says elites are looking to “replace” white Americans through immigration of nonwhite people, according to The Nation.
In 2022, Broward County Public Schools, the sixth-largest school district in the U.S., cut ties with Fishback and his group “Incubate Debate,” after district personnel were made aware of an alleged romantic relationship between Fishback and a 17-year-old, according to NBC News. Fishback was 27 at the time. He denied the allegations.
Photo caption: The logo of British social network OnlyFans on May 21, 2025. (Loic Venance/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)
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©2026 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit al.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency LLC.
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