Emmie Boese and Ashton Hittle
Lantern Staff
Kansas currently has a 6.5 percent tax on feminine hygiene products and items for women. Because of this tax rate, it affects many female college students in Kansas. College females are already on a tight budget because of high tuition rates, and some being on their own for the first time.
The ‘Pink Tax’ refers to the extra price that most women end up paying without realizing it. According to Listen Money Matters, a financial aid website, women pay 42 percent more than men do for things like dry cleaning, personal care products and vehicle maintenance, which averages out to about $1,351 per year. Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon are the only states without a sales tax.
As of November 2018, there are 10 states that have specifically exempted essential hygiene products, which include: Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Nevada and Pennsylvania.
Consumers spent $3.1 billion on tampons and other feminine hygiene products within the last year, according to market research firm Euromonitor.
“I do not think it is fair,” sophomore Niloofar Hossinei, a health science major, said.“I am not sure why anyone would do that, maybe because girls tend to shop more? The tax should be the same on both men and women.”
The average cost of a box of tampons is $7 for a box of 36, which adds up over time. Women have different flows and lengths of their periods, so that also adds to the different costs the women have to put into it. The average cost per year can range from $50 to $150.
In 2007, a lawsuit was filed by the U.S. Court of International Trade. Michael Cone, a customs attorney, raised the question on whether the different tariff rates for men’s and women’s apparel violated the constitutional equal protection provision. Cone’s case was dismissed from the court, and other cases like this one are still being discussed today in the trade world.
In the service providing side of the issue, research has said that more work goes into women’s wear, according to USA Today.
Dry cleaners have said that when working with women’s shirts they have to hand press the clothing. This causes more time, labor and cost that goes into the work. Now, for men’s shirts, they use a pressing machine, which reduces time and labor.
According to VOX, a news and opinion website, a study showed the yearly price difference per year is $1,351. This is an important issue among feminist groups, especially when studies, like the one Business Insider created, have shown that the average woman earns 79 percent of what men do in the work field.
Freshman visual arts major Kayla/Felix Everett explained how unfair she thinks the Pink Tax is for women.
I don’t think it’s right really once you think about it because I mean we are all human,” Everett said. “We all have basic needs. I don’t think it’s right.. like this is a feminine product, so we must dock it up higher by a dollar.
Overall , the ‘Pink Tax’ affects many college females. It takes a toll on college females more than anybody because females at this age are on their own for the first time,which means most are struggling when it comes to providing for themselves.