State Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur) followed his predecessor in introducing the bill in the Alabama Senate. Discussion at the end of last year This would exempt certain baby and feminine products from state and local sales taxes.

SB62is currently being passed by Congress in 2024 and will exempt a variety of items from state sales tax, including the following product categories:

• baby bottle
• powdered milk
• baby wipes
• Milking and product storage
• Diapers
• maternity wear
• Sanitary items

At Wednesday's Senate Education Trust Fund Committee meeting, state Sen. Garlan Gudger (R-Cullman) proposed an amendment that would exempt only state taxes, not local taxes. The amendment passed the committee on a 9-4 vote despite opposition from Sen. Orr.

“I think this is a great bill. We should have done this a long time ago. Thank you for thinking about it and bringing it forward,” Sen. Gudger said in his amendment.

With this amendment, senators in the committee unanimously reported the bill favorably, 15-0, and sent it to the full floor for a vote.

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State Sen. Vivian Figures, R-Mobile, said she has long supported the idea of ​​eliminating state taxes on baby, maternity and feminine products.

“And for those of you who haven’t been here, I just want to remind everyone that this amendment, for everything that’s going to happen after 27 years of voting to eliminate the sales tax. has been pushing this issue forward,” the figures said.

State Sen. Greg Albritton, who is not a co-sponsor of the bill, said he did not propose the bill because he believes he is not a co-sponsor. It has a negative impact on the general fund.

“This will require $2.5 million in the governor's budget, so we will have to revise estimates etc. downward to reflect that. We received certain bills that could increase general fund and ETF revenues. Sometimes, when you look at the sponsors and co-sponsors on this, you just hope that they're the same people who are happy to cut taxes and reduce revenue for the state in any enhancement bill that may come. You have the foresight to vote yes,” Albritton said.

The tax exemption, if passed by both houses of Congress and signed by Governor Ivey, would go into effect on October 1, 2024.

Michael Brauner is a senior sports analyst and contributing writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP