The governor said menstruating people have no choice on whether to buy menstrual products, and the tax is a burden that falls most heavily on the economically disadvantaged.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed legislation Thursday to lift the state sales and use tax on tampons and menstrual products.
“We’ve been trying to get this done for a long time,” Whitmer after signing the first of two bills in the package.
Whitmer noted she supported similar legislation when she served as a House and Senate lawmaker.
“This transcended many different legislatures and legislators,” she said. “But we are here today and I know it is going to make a difference for every menstruating Michigander.”
Whitmer said the burden of the 6 percent tax on menstrual products falls most heavily on young adults and low-income families, and the estimated $6 million reduction in state revenues is a pittance in comparison. She said for people with uteruses, menstrual products are a necessity.
“So, repealing this unfair, one-sided tax is the right thing to do,” she said. “Over the course of a lifetime, the average menstruating Michigander will use 17 thousand tampons. That’s 456 periods, costing 7 to 10 dollars a month.”
Michigan joins 20 other states that don’t have similar taxes.
