The Equality State?

Our beloved Keystone State has confusing sales tax requirements. The levy is added to all purchases except food and clothing. That seems simple enough, except “prepared” food and “custom” clothing is taxable. A can of peas is tax-exempt. Peas from the deli bar are 6% more expensive. The price shown is what you pay for a pair of jeans off the rack at the Gap. Tax-free clothing is why PA is the Outlet Capitol of the Northeast. If you have alterations made at Catherine’s Stout Shop ( the worst store name ever), you pay 6% tax on both the dress and the alterations.

Also tax-exempt in Pennsylvania and many other states are devices and drugs deemed as “qualified medical expenses” by the IRS. Unfortunately, the IRS did not include “feminine hygiene products” on that list. Those pesky feminists had to go to individual state legislatures to have tampons, pads, etc. made tax-free. Of course, some states were more receptive than others. A Wyoming State Senator argued that removing the tax on feminine hygiene products favors one sex over the other and proposed making male hygiene products like “soaps and foot powder” tax-exempt as well. Wyoming’s state nickname (ironically) is The Equality State. It was the first to grant women the right to vote in 1869. Attitudes have changed in the (In) Equality State.

Twenty states have ended the “tampon tax” since 2016. What’s with the other thirty? States collect an estimated $30 million sales tax revenue per year on feminine hygiene products. This is 0.01% of state tax income. Can’t we cut our wives and daughters some slack?

By Ed Dufton