DALLAS — The Texas House of Representatives recently passed a bill that will help families, mothers and babies in particular.
HB 300 eliminates the sales tax on some baby supplies, including diapers, baby wipes and bottles, as well as on menstrual products such as tampons and sanitary pads.
The bill’s author said the savings could help a Texas family put an extra tank of gas in the car or a couple of more meals on the table.
"In the greater scheme of things, we’re talking about pennies in terms of on the dollar. But at the same time, that adds up over time, especially for hardworking families that are living paycheck to paycheck, who have babies, who need to take care of their families," state Rep. Donna Howard told Inside Texas Politics.
"And I know the diaper banks have indicated that the savings that we could accrue here from not having a sales tax on these products, for diapers in particular, over the course of a year, you could buy an extra month’s worth of diapers with what you saved," she said.
This was Howard’s fourth session in a row to file some version of this legislation.
And the Democrat from Austin is confident about the bill’s chances to also clear the Texas Senate.
The bill was referred to the Senate Finance Committee where it has the support of the chair, Houston Republican Sen. Joan Huffman.
Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick have also indicated their support for the legislation.
"This session, the Speaker decided to pull together a variety of pieces of legislation that could help families, and especially women and children. So, he asked me to carry this bill that actually consolidated several members’ bills," Howard said.
"There were some indications before this session started that there was going to be more of an effort to focus on helping moms and babies and families as the result of some of the legislation that happened last time and the overturning of Roe v Wade," she added.