Seattle would study the possibility of exempting menstrual hygiene products from the city’s portion of the sales tax under a proposal that has attracted strong support from City Council members, reports the Seattle Times.
There is, of course, an egalitarian angle to their thinking.
The Times adds:
The idea is that menstrual hygiene products, like prescription drugs and food items, are necessities and therefore should not be taxed. Washington exempts prescription drugs and most food items from the sales tax.
The statement of legislative intent proposed Tuesday by Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda as part of the city’s 2019 budget would request that Mayor Jenny Durkan’s administration “evaluate the feasibility of exempting menstrual hygiene products” through either city or state action. A report would be due back to the council by May 15, 2019.
The sales tax on tampons amounts to a special tax on women, who are paid “76 cents on the dollar compared to men in King County,” Mosqueda said.And here is a heroic bold step in Seattle in tax relief beyond tampons:
Councilmember Debora Juarez suggested diapers also be considered as an item for the city to exempt from its portion of the sales tax.Hey, you know, you get these crazy local government officials on a trend and you don't know where it could go.
Tax exemption for tampons, now!
-RW
I'd argue that toilet paper is a necessity, along with soap, shampoo, toothpaste, and deodorant. Those should be thrown onto the "no-tax" heap as well!
ReplyDeleteOnly about 40% of prescription drugs in the US are a “necessity”. An estimated $200 billion per year is spent in the US on the unnecessary and improper use of prescription drugs. That’s 60% of what the US spends on these drugs.
ReplyDeleteEverything should be exempt from all taxes but if the necessity of something is to determine its tax status a good portion of drugs are not going to make the cut. And what about food items like donuts, are they a necessity? Only for cops.
As feminists achieve things like this they can start pushing for women to simply be exempt from taxes entirely. Special sales tax exemptions for certain items can easily expand to more and more items and then to exemptions of different taxes.
ReplyDeleteThey are trying this bullshit in Nevada as well
ReplyDelete