'Tampon Tax' Reduced in Chicago by City Council Vote

Chicago, IL - Feminine hygiene products will be exempt from Chicago's 1.25 percent sales tax beginning next year, after the Chicago City Council voted Wednesday to classify them as medical necessities.

Tampons and sanitary napkins have been classified as grooming and hygiene products, and they are currently taxed at 10.25 percent, which includes a 6.25 percent state tax, a 1.75 percent county tax, a 1.25 percent city tax and a 1 percent Regional Transportation Authority tax, according to the Committee on Finance.

The council voted 46-0 to reclassify the products and eliminate the city tax, according to WGN, and the change will take place after the law can be made consistent across the state.

Members of the city council also urged the Illinois General Assembly to reclassify tampons and sanitary napkins so they can qualify for a reduced state sales tax of 1 percent.

Feminine hygiene products are exempt from sales tax in Minnesota, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Massachusetts, and similar bills have been introduced in New York, Ohio, Utah and Virginia, the Committee on Finance reported. Legislation in the California State Assembly is also pending to make sanitary items exempt from state sales tax.