Kansas considers sales tax holiday, permanent tax exemption for diapers and tampons

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly is all for providing sales tax relief, such as getting rid of the sales tax on food and other essentials. In fact, she says she’s “dead set on making sure working Kansans get a tax cut this year.” But she’s not for just any old tax cut.

On January 26, 2024, the Kansas Legislature passed a bill (HB 2284) that, among other provisions, would establish a flat 5.25% individual income tax and provide property tax relief. It also sought to fully exempt food from the state sales tax starting April 1, 2024. Currently, the state sales tax on food is set to hit 0% on January 1, 2025.

Governor Kelly vetoed HB 2284 the day it landed on her desk. “I support responsible tax cuts, but I refuse to sign into law a reckless flat tax that would take us back to Brownback,” she wrote in her veto message, referring to former Governor Sam Brownback, her predecessor. Income tax cuts created during Brownback’s tenure brought Kansas to the brink of a fiscal cliff.

The Kansas Legislature attempted to override the veto, but the motion to reconsider failed. April 1 came and went without a change to the sales tax rate for food.

Meanwhile, there was HB 2586 to consider, a bill backed by the governor.

“HB 2586 contains several tax relief provisions that are similar — and in some cases identical — to the plan passed by the legislature,” according to the Tax Foundation. One key difference is the approach to individual income tax reform: While HB 2284 would create a flat income tax, HB 2586 would maintain the state’s graduated income tax rates. The Tax Foundation prefers the income tax policy put forward in HB 2284.

Another difference: HB 2586 proposed more sales tax changes than the Legislature’s bill.

HB 2586 sought to exempt diapers from Kansas sales tax on and after April 1, 2024. Feminine hygiene products would also have been sales tax exempt from that date forward had the bill become law.

Kansas isn’t the only state looking to exempt such essential products. More than a dozen states are considering a sales tax exemption for diapers, menstrual products, or both.

HB 2586 also included a back-to-school sales tax holiday, something the governor touted during her 2024 State of the State address. Under the bill, qualifying clothing, computers, and school supplies would be exempt from state and local sales tax for four days in early August.

Many states have at least one sales tax holiday, but Kansas currently doesn’t have a tax-free weekend.

Like the vetoed bill, HB 2586 sought to accelerate the timeline for the sales tax exemption for food. Had it been enacted, there would have been no state sales tax on food sold for home consumption in Kansas starting April 1, 2024 — though local sales taxes would still have applied to applicable food sales.

HB 2586 was referred to the Committee on Calendar and Printing on April 25, 2024, and has seen no action since. However, there’s another bill seeking to accelerate the 0% rate for food. Should Senate Bill 300 be enacted, food would be exempt from the Kansas state sales tax starting July 1, 2024. 

SB 300 would not establish a new sales tax holiday or exempt diapers or menstrual products. It would reduce individual income tax rates, reduce privilege tax rates, and lower residential property taxes.

Whatever happens in Kansas, we’ll let you know at the Avalara Tax Desk. In the meantime, read about other sales tax changes in Avalara Tax Changes 2024.

This post has been updated; it was originally published on February 6, 2024.