DISCOVER

Mapping Out Artifacts - Secondary Findings Map

12/16/20

Mining Artifacts - Annotations

11/16/20 - 12/14/20

Mining Artifacts

Building By Questioning

11/4/20

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What long term benefits could be garnered by sheltering feminine hygiene products from sales tax? Furthermore, how would doing so address gender equity?

My Pre-search revolved around the tampon tax. The tampon tax is a term used to express the tax imposed by the government on feminine hygiene products. 98% of women in America use a combination of both pads and tampons on a monthly basis, yet these products are still being taxed as luxury products in 30 of the 50 U.S. states.

The main argument of people who support the tampon tax is revenue collection. Half of the average American’s income is spent on items that have a sales tax, which generates a lot of money for the state’s governments and economies. If the tampon tax was removed from the states where the tampon tax is enforced, what effect would this tax revenue loss have on the economy?

People who do not support the tampon tax argue that it is a sex-based form of discrimination because it only affects women who menstruate, which is both illegal and unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause. If taxing feminine hygiene products is unlawful under the Equal Protection Clause, how is the government still able to enforce it?

A “necessity” is defined as something that is required or indispensable. Tampons are purchased when the economy is at its best and when the economy is at its worst, an essential product that supports feminine hygiene. Various items considered to be necessities by the Tax Foundation are exempt from sales taxes across the U.S. to protect low-income consumers from paying taxes on products they must purchase to survive in daily life. There are currently over a thousand health and personal care items not subject to sales tax, including Viagra, dandruff shampoo, and ChapStick. What arguments can be made to argue that tampons are necessities?

Given that the tampon tax is essentially a gender injustice, what steps must be taken in order to abolish the tampon tax across the country and promote gender equity? I plan to explore these questions to better understand the tampon tax through continued research and question-asking.

Post Pre-search and LEAP Group Feedback Reflection

11/1/20

After Pre-searching information on the tampon tax the past few weeks, discussing my Flipgrid video with my LEAP group, and reflecting on my ability to talk informatively on the topic, I am confident in my decision to move past Pre-searching and on to ‘Building the Questions.’

I went into Pre-search researching how homeless women in U.S. cities access health products, health care, and take care of themselves in terms of health/ hygiene while living on the streets. As I started gathering information and reading through numerous sources, I came to the conclusion that my topic was very broad. However, many subtopics within my initial topic spiked my curiosity. One recurring topic that came up had to do with homeless women dealing with their periods. As I began directing my research towards that route, I learned of what is known as the tampon tax, a term that describes the tax implemented by the government on feminine hygiene products. After discussing my shift in topic with Ms. D’Alise, I decided to Pre-search and revolve my Capstone project around the infamous tampon tax.

When it came time to make my Flipgrid video, I felt that I had a good amount of information under my belt. I gave a description/ definition of the tampon tax and discussed why people support it and reasons why people do not support it. I described the process of taxing items throughout the U.S., explained various laws and legislation, and remained unbiased until revealing my personal thoughts on the tampon tax. I believed it was important to research both sides of the argument to fully understand the tampon tax and how it negatively affects women, and how it positively impacts the government and economy. Through my Pre-search, I found 10+ reliable sources and divided my findings into the following categories: ‘What IS the Tampon Tax?’, ‘Information on Sales Tax,’ ‘Who/ Why people SUPPORT the Tampon Tax,’ ‘Who/ Why people DO NOT SUPPORT the Tampon Tax,’ and ‘What is happening today.’

I am confident that I have a solid understanding of the tampon tax and am at the place in my research to develop an overarching question. After conferencing with my LEAP group, I have a better understanding of how to organize my research and where to focus my research. I am excited to take the next step in my Capstone project.

Topic Pre-search

10/13/20 - 11/1/20

What is Pre-search?

Pre-search comes before research! Exploring your topic and getting some background information at the start of a research project can help you identify useful information (i.e. a theme or subtopic to focus on, possible questions to be answered, timelines, etc.) and save you time. This is also a good way to refine your search - to take a broad topic (education, for example) and narrow it to something that you can cover in a more meaningful way in your paper (do programs like Teach for America really work?).

My Topic: The Tampon Tax

Key Words:

Necessity
Injustice
Feminine Hygiene
Sales Tax
Government

What IS the Tampon Tax?

“Tampon tax” and “pink tax” are terms used to express the tax imposed by the government on menstrual hygiene products
As of 2020, 20 U.S. states including Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, and Wyoming are tampon tax free
30 U.S. states are NOT tampon tax free

Information on Sales Tax:

Most sales taxes exempt various necessities in most states across the U.S.
Legislators have exempt sales tax from essentials and other necessities to protect low-income customers from paying tax on things they have to purchase to survive in daily life (ex. food)
Half of the average American’s income is spent on items that have sales tax
Sales tax has shrunk over time due to: states creating exemptions, untaxed online sales, economy consisting of services
Sales tax is excluded from most services
The largest categories of service (housing, education, medical care, etc.) can also be considered necessities
The Tax Foundation generally opposes exemptions from sales tax
Arguments regarding what items are considered necessities often lead to complicated sales tax rules
Tax breaks are not distributed equally amongst consumers
There are currently 1000+ health and personal care products that do not have sales tax on them in many states of the U.S.
Three products exempt from sales tax are Viagra, dandruff shampoo, and ChapStick
Menstrual products are not on the list of items that are exempt from sales tax

Who/ Why people SUPPORT the Tampon Tax:

Revenue collection is the main argument of people supporting the tampon tax
Women pay an average of $7 per month for 40 years of feminine menstrual products in the state of California, which generates about $20 million in taxes annually
It is estimated that the state of California would lose $20 million a year by removing taxes on feminine hygiene products
New York banned the tampon tax and lost close to $14,000,000 a year
Nicole Keading (a member of the Tax Foundation) argued that other items were put at risk of higher rates due to removing the tax on tampons
Republican Joey Hensley, the State Senator of Tennessee believes that making tampons tax free will lead to women hoarding tampons
Banning the tampon tax will result in states generating less revenue
Taxing all products, regardless of whether or not they are necessities, results in the lowest rate for that product possible
If one single item is removed from the sales tax, all other items that some may consider necessities would be put at risk for a higher rate
Some believe that taking away sales tax from necessities is a political idea and not an economic idea
Removing tampons from sales tax violates the whole idea and foundation of the sales tax policy
What is considered to be a necessity varies per person
People will purchase tampons when the economy is bad, and people will buy tampons when the economy is at its best and when it is at its worst
Annually, states profit $150 million from periods/ menstrual products

Who/ Why people DO NOT SUPPORT the Tampon Tax:

Tampons are a necessity because women can’t just ignore their periods
People will purchase tampons when the economy is bad, and people will buy tampons when the economy is at its best and when it is at its worst (necessity)
It is a form of sex-based discrimination as it only has an effect on those who menstruate, which is both illegal and unconstitutional
Those against the tampon tax claim that it is essentially a tax on the female sex and that it is unconstitutional for budgets to be “balanced on women’s backs” according to Cristina Garcia, California State Assemblywomen
Tampon tax is considered a gender injustice, as it affects women who can not control their bodily function of menstruation
Many women have consistently expressed their frustration and daily struggle with buying feminine hygiene products because the cost adds up quick each month

Tampons are a basic necessity that should not be taxed and should be considered a necessary product for women everywhere

The tampon tax effects women who are already on the bottom half of the gender wage gap
People must realize that the tampon tax is not insignificant, especially for those on a tight budget
“Government is taxing women for something that is totally out of their control… Feminine hygiene is not a choice and should not be taxed.” - California assemblywoman Ling Ling Chang
“If we can’t make them free we should at least make them affordable … having your period when [you’re] poor means that once a month you have the added stress of finding a way to pay for these essentials” -Cristina Garcia
Managing a period is critical for women, and affects over half the U.S. population
Menstruation should be considered when policies are being made
Tampons and pads are unarguably a necessity
Tampons are often out of reach for women in poverty
Menstrual products should be safe for your body and the planet
Many people in the U.S. who are struggling to make ends meet have to choose between food or buying tampons/ pads
Menstrual products need to be made accessible and free in shelters, schools, correctional facilities, and other public places
In their lifetime, a person is likely to use up to 16,000 tampons
January 2016: President Obama explains that he does not support the tampon tax, stating “I have to tell you, I have no idea why states would tax these… I suspect it’s because men were making the laws when those taxes were passed.” - President Barack Obama

What is happening today:

During California’s 2016 legislative session, assemblywoman Cristina Garcia proposed her Assembly Bill 1561, a bill that would excuse menstrual products from sales tax
In relation to her proposed bill, Garcia stated that “Basically we are being taxed for being women … This is a step in the right direction to fix this gender injustice”
Garcia’s Bill was passed in both the California Assembly and Senate in August of 2016
June of 2019, the ‘Tax Free. Period.’ campaign launched in hopes to eliminate the tampon tax by Tax Day of 2021
U.S. October 19, 2019- first National Period Day, over 60 rallies across the country demanding the elimination of the tampon tax and demonstrating support for menstrual equity
Tampon tax timeline: https://www.taxfreeperiod.com/blog-entries/historytampontaxadvocacy

Videos:

Sources:

IRT Presentation

10/13/20

5 Minute Reflection

As a presenter, I believe I have some things I need to work on in order to improve my presentation skills and present to the best of my ability. During my presentation of Mars One, I believe I did well considering the physical presentation aspect. I talked in a loud, clear voice (which was a challenge due to the thick mask I was wearing), and moved around utilizing my space. I believe I sounded knowledgeable and convincing in answering the question of "Why Did Mars One Fail?". Something I need to work on moving forward is practicing my presentation more with my partner in person so our presentation will have a better flow. I also need to work on creating better slides for the slideshow portions of my presentations. I need to include better, more effective images, and shouldn't rely so heavily on text. This was my first presentation in CAPS, and I believe it was a good starting point as I got useful feedback from Ms. D'Alise and my peers. I am excited to improve my presentation skills and become a more effective presenter as the year goes on.

Report abuse