Bill to Save Coloradans Money on Essential Hygiene Products Clears Committee
“Don’t tax dignity” bill would end sales tax on menstrual products, diapers and incontinence products
DENVER, CO – Today, the Senate Finance Committee unanimously approved legislation sponsored by Senators Faith Winter (D-Westminster) and Sonya Jaquez Lewis (D-Boulder County) that would eliminate the state tax on essential hygiene products like menstrual products, diapers, and incontinence products.
“Every Coloradan deserves to live with dignity, but for far too many, their inability to pay for basic human needs like period products and diapers means they can’t,” said Sen. Winter. “With this bill, we’re removing the tax on dignity while ensuring that Coloradans can save money on essential items. This is a commonsense step in the right direction that will help countless families afford these products so they can maintain their own health and care for their loved ones.”
"Right now, things like food and medicine are tax exempt, but other essential hygiene products are not. This inequity impacts low-income folks and communities of color the most,” said Sen. Jaquez Lewis. “This critical bill is about dignity. The more we can make these products affordable, the more access they will have."
Far too many Coloradans have difficulty affording basic needs like menstrual products, infant diapers or incontinence products. Under the bill, specific hygiene products would join other tax exempt essentials like food and medicine. The current sales and use tax on essential products falls disproportionately on communities of color and older Coloradans with fixed incomes.
If passed, HB22-1055 would help more than 200,000 children under the age of 3 and their families who spend about $80 per child per month on diapers, 1.6 million individuals between the ages of 12 and 55 and their families who spend $15 a month per individual who menstruates and some of the 850,000 older adults who can spend as much as $240 a month on incontinence products.
HB22-1055 now moves to the Appropriations Committee for further consideration. Track the progress of the bill HERE.