Kansas Republican Schmidt wants to eliminate sales tax on diapers, feminine hygiene

Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt wants to eliminate the sales tax on diapers and feminine hygiene products.

Schmidt, the Republican nominee for Kansas governor, announced the proposal Tuesday morning after touring Giving the Basics, a Kansas City, Kansas, nonprofit that provides hygiene products to residents in need.

Months after the Kansas Legislature approved a gradual elimination of the food sales tax, Schmidt framed the proposed tax exemption as a way to lessen the impact inflation has on Kansas families. Iowa, Colorado, and Nebraska had already implemented similar policies.

“Kansas, I believe, ought to join the ranks of those states that provide that type of relief to young families, particularly young mothers,” he said. “We think that makes good sense, is wholly affordable, and is the right thing to do especially at a time of runaway inflation and higher costs.”

He said he would ask the Legislature to have the measure on his desk within the first 100 days of his term if he is elected.

It’s unclear exactly what the measure would cost but Schmidt cited the $11.5 million price tag in Iowa as a comparable estimate. Feminine hygiene products and diapers are currently subject to Kansas’ 6.5% sales tax.

State Rep. Vic Miller, a Topeka Democrat, introduced a similar proposal last year, but it did not get a floor vote.

Kelly’s campaign spokeswoman, Lauren Fitzgerald, said in a statement that “of course” the governor supported cutting taxes on necessities.

“This is just another election-year ploy from Schmidt,” Fitzgerald said. “If Schmidt really supported this, he would have urged his colleagues in the Legislature to get this bill to the Governor’s desk.”

Earlier this year Kelly signed a bill to eliminate the food sales tax. The measure, however, is gradual and the first cut does not take effect until January. Kelly had pushed for an immediate elimination, but the GOP majority in the Legislature preferred a gradual step down.

Schmidt had also advocated for the food sales cut. The hygiene product proposal is the second tax proposal Schmidt has brought this year. Earlier this year Schmidt proposed a plan aimed at ending state income tax on retirement benefits.

Kelly and other Democrats have hit Schmidt on taxes, claiming he would return the state to the budget woes seen following former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback’s tax cuts.

Brownback’s signature tax cuts included the elimination of income tax for the owners of limited liability companies and other pass-through businesses, along with a steep reduction to rates. The cuts were repealed in 2017 by a bipartisan vote to override Brownback’s veto after several years of budget shortfalls.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has faced comparisons to Brownback as he pursues tax cuts in an upcoming special session in the neighboring state.

For his part, Schmidt largely dodged a question on income taxes Tuesday and instead referenced his retirement income tax proposal.

“I’m a Republican, I prefer lower taxes. I think you have to have enough revenue to pay the bills and I think that focusing on making sure that bills are sustainably paid is really critical for anybody in a leadership position,” Schmidt said. “I do think there are issues on the income tax side we need to focus on but those two areas, retire tax free and (hygiene sales tax) are where we think the focus needs to be.”