A New Jersey couple has filed a class action lawsuit against retailer Costco for improperly charging sales tax on toilet paper, when the state law specifically exempts toilet paper from the tax. See the CNBC story here.
This case is not quite analogous to the class action suits challenging the tampon tax in New York (see here) and Florida (see here) because toilet paper is specifically exempt from taxation under New Jersey law, whereas in New York and Florida, menstrual hygiene products are subject to tax. But the Costco case is helpful as an example of large class action sales tax refund case. If the tampon tax were found to be unconstitutional when imposed in New York (which repealed its tampon tax prospectively) or Florida, massive refunds would be in order. I’ll be following the Costco/toilet paper case with interest.
