Ohio lawmakers could end sales tax on diapers and other baby products

Attendees from Huggies, Walgreens and the National Diaper Bank Network help coordinate diaper donations at Share Our Spare on Aug. 24, 2022 in Chicago. The event is part of a partnership between Huggies and Walgreens where for every pack of Huggies Diapers purchased at Walgreens in August, Huggies donates a day's worth of diapers to the National Diaper Bank Network -up to 1M diapers. (Jean-Marc Giboux/AP Images for Huggies)AP

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A state Senate committee unanimously passed legislation Tuesday that would remove sales and use taxes on baby products like diapers, car seats and baby carriers.

The legislation is part of a larger trend of states passing similar tax exemptions after the U.S. Supreme Court effectively gave them the right to limit or ban abortion. The tax rollbacks have been adopted by states with strict and lax abortion laws alike.

"A removal of sales tax from such products would ease the financial burden of raising children, and encourage people nationwide to start their family in Ohio," said Sen. Tim Schaffer, a Lancaster Republican sponsoring the legislation, in written testimony.

"This bill demonstrates that Ohio is truly pro-child and pro-family."

Both Gov. Mike DeWine and the Ohio House have proposed budgets that would wipe away sales and use taxes on baby products, meaning the idea is likely (but not guaranteed) to become law. The Senate is currently in the process of drawing up its own version of a budget document, alongside the standalone baby bill that passed out of the Senate Ways and Means committee Tuesday.

The most significant proposed exemption, in terms of net costs, is diapers, though Senate Bill 39 would also apply to booster seats, portable cribs, and baby monitors.

The idea would cost the state between $19 million and $31 million per year from the general revenue fund – a small portion of which is legally required to flow to local governments and public libraries. Because some counties level local sales taxes, the bill will also cost county transit agencies between $5 million and $8 million, according to analysis from state legislative researchers.

Advocates for the bill (no one testified against the proposal in the Senate) say this is money well spent that eases the cost burden of thousands of diapers per year costing families hundreds of dollars. In Ohio, one in five children aged 0-5 live in poverty and another one in 10 live in extreme poverty, according to Erin Ryan of the child advocacy organization Groundwork Ohio. The rates are 2.5- to 4-times higher for children of color.

"Senate Bill 39 recognizes the basic, necessary role that everyday baby items, such as diapers, strollers, and car seats, play in raising a baby, while also providing additional financial savings during a time when families face immense expenses when preparing for and welcoming a new child into their lives," she said.

Seventeen states plus Washington D.C. do not levy a tax on diapers, according to the National Diaper Bank Network. Another five states don't levy any sales tax. Since the news outlet Politico first broke then-leaked word of the U.S. Supreme Court's reversal of women's constitutional right to abortion, seven states (Maryland, Florida, Colorado, Iowa, Virginia, Indiana and North Dakota) joined the list. Texas lawmakers passed a similar law last week. Minnesota is expected to as well.

Currently, the state sales and use tax rate is 5.75%. In fiscal year 2022 it generated $13.3 billion, according to the state Tax Department.

In 2020, state lawmakers authorized similar exemptions for feminine hygiene products and prescription adult diapers.

Jake Zuckerman covers state politics and policy for Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.

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