A New Orleans lawmaker has filed legislation that would eliminate the state sales tax when purchasing feminine products.

Senator J.P. Morrell’s measure would exempt items like tampons and diapers.

Supporter of the bill, executive director of Lift Louisiana, Michelle Erenberg, says these products are not luxury items for women. She says even though the cost saving is only a few dollars, every little bit helps.

“The savings could be significant for women who are purchasing diapers for their children. So we think this is going to save women in Louisiana a significant amount of money.”

Erenberg anticipates push back from some lawmakers because previous bills dealing with women’s issues have not much success in the legislature. But she says a significant amount of women in the Bayou State live below the poverty line so any extra savings each month helps them feed their families.

“With women being half of the population and this being something that would really impact that many voters in Louisiana, we should see more support than opposition.”

Erenberg says this is common sense legislation.

“If we’re going to provide tax exemptions for products that only impact certain businesses, then a tax exemption that would impact the lives of half of Louisiana’s voting population really just made sense.”

 

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