Written by: Sarah Johnson | March 25, 2020

By: Sarah Johnson

Pink Tax, what is it? Why was Scotland in the news last month relating to a Pink Tax? This week, we’ll take a closer look at what the “Pink Tax” is, what localities, states, and countries are doing about it, and the possible implications of the growing trend we are observing.

What is the “Pink Tax” and other important terms surrounding this issue?

Well, first things first, the “pink tax” is actually not a tax at all, but an increased price tacked onto an assortment of women’s products that are often pink, hence “pink tax”. A 2015 study by the New York Department of Consumer Affairs compared almost 800 retail items ranging from personal hygiene products to children’s toys from over 90 brands. This study found the “women’s” version for any given product was on average 7 percent more expensive than an equivalent “men’s” version. The biggest price disparity was for personal care products with the “pink” products averaging 13 percent more expensive. Check out this Huffington post article showing seven examples of this. For a great, brief podcast talking about this issue, check out THE INDICATOR The Problem With The Pink Tax.

Another important term is “tampon tax”; which again is also not an actual tax assigned to tampons/menstrual products. Most states apply sales tax to feminine hygiene products because they’re considered “luxury” goods — not “necessities”, like food and medicine. A lot of states do not tax medical and health supplies. Because of this “luxury” good classification, tampons are excluded from the medical/health supplies tax-exempt category.

Finally, the last term we need to be familiar with is “period equity”. According to Global Citizen, period poverty is the “lack of access to sanitary products, menstrual hygiene education, toilets, hand washing facilities, and, or, waste management”. Global Citizen also points out that the cultural and societal shame attached to menstruation and the shortage of accessible resources world wide stop women from going to school and working every day.

Jennifer Weiss-Wolf spoke about this idea in her recently published book, Periods Gone Public. In the book, she writes that managing menstruation “is a critical aspect of the lives and civic participation of more than half the population.” Weiss-Wolf partnered with Laura Strausfeld, a lawyer looking to combat the tampon tax, to create Period Equity. Period Equity is an organization that works on legislation and legal cases around the nation to combat the tampon tax. Two years ago, Period Equity partnered with Amber Rose to demonstrate how taxing tampons as a luxury, like 31 states still do, is ridiculous.

What does Scotland have to do with it?

Scotland has been a global leader in addressing period poverty. In 2018 Scotland became the first country to make period products freely available in schools, colleges, and universities. They then made history in February 2020 when they passed the Period Products Bill through the first of three stages in the Scottish Parliament. This bill, if passed, will make Scotland the first country in the world to make tampons and pads free to anyone who needs them. For a breakdown on the bill, its significance, and the remarkable debate over the topic of periods (which is rarely addressed in public, despite the fact that half the population menstruates at some point in their lives), read this article from NPR.

Parliament member Monica Lennon has spearheaded a campaign to build support for the measure since she first proposed the bill in 2017. She told the Daily Record: 

This is an amazing victory for everyone who has campaigned for free universal access to period products and who has convinced the Scottish Government to back this ground-breaking Bill. Scotland has already taken important steps towards improving access to period products and tackling stigma but legislation will guarantee rights, ensure that current initiatives continue in future on a universal basis, and will help us achieve period dignity for all.

The bill will now enter the second phase in parliament during which legislators can propose amendments to the bill. It is expected that many amendments will be proposed addressing the cost and implementation of the program. According to Reuters, the program would cost an estimated $31.2 million annually.

What is happening around the U.S.?

Some states have been trying to pass tampon tax legislation since as early as 2015. States now are in the midst of still trying to pass this legislation, attempting to add diapers to tampon tax bills, or now combatting the pink tax. Let’s take a look, below are all of the bills since 2015 that pertain to feminine hygiene products and taxes.


Ohio was ahead of most of the states, proposing (failed) legislation “to exempt from sales and use tax the sale of tampons and other feminine hygiene products associated with menstruation” in 2015. In 2016, Governor Jerry Brown vetoed CA AB1561 citing the impact exemption of sanitary napkins, tampons, menstrual sponges, and menstrual cups would have on the state’s revenue, which was determined by the California Board of Equalization to be $20 million. Also in 2016, the Utah Hygiene Tax Act was proposed but ultimately failed. Michigan’s bill failed in 2016 as well. New York was the only successful state to actually pass their legislation in 2016. The NY bill’s sponsor, Assembly member Linda B. Rosenthal, said about the tax, “The tampon tax is a regressive tax on women and their bodies. New York women will now be relieved of paying a luxury tax on products that address a biological necessity.”

Chicago became one of the first cities in the US to pass a ban on tampon taxes in 2016. In DC, four lawmakers introduced and ultimately passed a bill to exempt feminine hygiene products and diapers from the District’s sales tax in 2016, but it wasn’t funded by Mayor Muriel Bowser until 2019.

In 2017, Arizona proposed HB2418 which would have exempted tampons, sanitary napkins, menstrual sponges and cups, baby formula, and diapers from the state sales tax. It did not pass. Louisiana also proposed but did not pass a similar bill in 2017.

In 2019, many states proposed this legislation. Georgia attempted to remove their 4 percent tax with GA HB8, but it is still currently in their House Ways and Means Committee. Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed SB1715/HB2540 after they almost unanimously passed to reduce the Virginia sales tax (2.5 percent) on essential personal hygiene products, including tampons, in March of 2019. VA attempted to pass legislation like this in 2016, but it failed.

When it comes to the pink tax, in 2019 Jackie Speier proposed the Pink Tax Repeal Act. This legislation would allow “the Federal Trade Commission to enforce violations and gives State Attorneys General the authority to take civil action on behalf of consumers wronged by discriminatory practices.” Speier released a statement about the bill where she states

Women get hit with a double whammy: They make less for doing the same work and they pay more for the same product or service because it’s for women. Whether it’s a pink teddy bear, deodorant from the same manufacturer, or a white laundered shirt, it’s time to say enough! Discrimination is illegal.

This bill was referred to the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce where it died last year. Pennsylvania proposed a resolution urging the Congress of the United States to pass the Pink Tax Repeal Act. Ohio passed SB26 in 2019 which which provides a tax credit to teachers who purchase school supplies, includes an amendment that repeals the state’s tax on tampons and other feminine hygiene products.

A Washington bill to get rid of the tampon tax crossed over in early March of 2020. Also this year, New York Governor Cuomo has decided to tackle the Pink Tax, according the governor’s 2020 agenda. When speaking about the situation and possible legislation, Cuomo said

The legislation would require certain service providers to post price lists for standard services [as well as a] notice that gender-based price discrimination is prohibited under state law. Businesses that violate the law would be subject to civil penalties. For too long women and girls faced social and economic discrimination in all aspects of their life, but in New York we’re leading the fight for true gender equity.

A Hawaii bill proposed this year would appropriate funds to the DOE to make feminine hygiene products available to students for free on public secondary school campuses. Arizona and Illinois proposed similar bills that would require schools that serve pupils sixth grade or higher to make feminine hygiene products available in all women’s and gender-neutral restrooms at the school. South Carolina proposed legislation to require every state correctional facility, local detention facility, jail, prison camp, and work camp to provide feminine hygiene products at no charge.

 

One thing that is always very interesting for me is seeing the different trends that come out in legislation. With this, it seems like something that has been overlooked for a long time. I understand states not wanting to forfeit tax revenue, but the buying power of women is important.