Tampon Tax Lifted in New York

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation Thursday that eliminates state and local sales tax on feminine hygiene products.

The drive for the legislation was spearheaded by two downstate lawmakers — Sen. Sue Serino, a Hyde Park Republican, and Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal, a Manhattan Democrat.

“With the signing of this bill today, we are taking a monumental step forward in reforming our out-of-touch tax laws, and we are sending a strong message to New York’s women that they are being heard," said Serino, who represents western Dutchess and Putnam counties. "This day is long overdue, and I commend Governor Cuomo, as well as my colleagues in the Senate, for helping to finally make this tax a thing of the past. It is my hope that we can continue down the path of applying commonsense to our tax laws as we work to make our state more affordable for all New Yorkers.”

Feminine hygiene products — the name given to personal care products used by women during menstruation, vaginal discharge, and similar bodily functions — have been taxable in New York since the state sales tax was first instituted in 1965, even as a wide variety of other goods, such as dietary and family planning products, have been exempt, officials said.

In fact, they're taxed in 40 states and in many countries, according to the Women's Health Foundation.

"These legislative efforts, international advocacy organizations, donation drives, social media campaigns like #TheHomelessPeriod, #FreeTheTampons, #JustATampon, and #NoTaxOnTampons, and petitions like this one sponsored by Jennifer Weiss-Wolf and Cosmopolitan all point to a broader international movement coalescing around advocacy and education for menstrual and pelvic health," wrote Liz Bowman on womenshealthfoundation.org.

New York is one of the first states to join the movement to exempt feminine hygiene products from sales tax, which is expected to save women purchasing tampons and other similar products an estimated $10 million a year.

“I am proud that my bill exempting feminine hygiene products from state and local sales tax has been signed into law by the governor," Rosenthal said. "The signing of this bill into law represents a new dawn. Women statewide will no longer be burdened by a lingering tax that was levied at a time when women were not part of government and the decision-making process. The tampon tax is regressive, and lifting it will spare all women the extra monthly burden of paying taxes on products that are already unaffordable to many.”

LOGO/Sen. Serino's office