New York’s Tampon Tax Will Soon Be A Thing Of The Past

It looks like women in New York will be saving some money when they buy tampons in the future, now that the state’s Assembly has agreed with the Senate, and unanimously voted to repeal a sales tax on feminine hygiene products.

The bill to remove a 4% sales tax on tampons, sanitary napkins, panty liners, and other related products passed the Assembly on Wednesday with a 56-0 vote. That tax can add up to $0.88 for an $11 pack of 50 tampons, Syracuse.com points out.

“Moving this legislation forward is a win for consumers, and it’s a win for women, who have largely shouldered the burden of the tax for generations,” Sen. Sue Serino, who sponsored the bill, said in a statement reported by the Journal News.

The bill also allows for future products, said Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal.

“It was very important that the bill language was broad enough to envisage new menstrual products,” she said. “If and when the day comes that a new and improved menstrual technology hits the market, this law, once it is signed, will provide us with flexibility so that we don’t have to go back in and amend the law to exempt each and every new product, that new product will simply be exempt.”

All that remains now is for Governor Andrew Cuomo to sign the bill into law, which he said on Wednesday he’d do. It’s slated to take effect on the first day of the next sales tax quarterly period, which, if it’s signed in the next two months, would be Sept. 1.

“Repealing this regressive and unfair tax on women is a matter of social and economic justice, and I commend Assembly Member Rosenthal and Senator Serino for their strong advocacy on this measure. I look forward to signing it into law,” Cuomo said.

In March, five women filed a class action lawsuit against New York’s Department of Taxation and Finance, saying that while other medical items are sold without a tax — including Rogaine, foot powder, dandruff shampoo, ChapStick, adult diapers, and incontinence pads — medical items used only by women like tampons and sanitary napkins are subject to the state’s 4% sales tax.

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist