Every summer, a number of states hold sales tax holidays on all sorts of supplies, from notebooks and pencils to clothing and computers.
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Opponents of sales tax holidays often focus on the resulting lost revenues, saying reduced sales tax collections negatively affects state services. That said, with parents spending more than $600 on average for school supplies, according to the National Retail Federation, those savings can certainly add up.
Wiregrass counties and cities are participating in the sales tax holiday.
The holiday is August. 7-9 and applies to clothing and footwear items that cost $75 or less and to supplies and instructional materials that cost $20 or less. She said many shoppers out hunting deals on school supplies will also spend money on other items as well.
Families can save on supplies for the upcoming school year by shopping during a sales tax holiday.
“We’d like to see the legislature make this a permanent and recurring event annually”, said Lora Miller, director of government affairs and public relations for the Ohio Council of Retail Merchants.
Passed last December as a part of Senate Bill 243, the back-to-school sales tax holiday is only in effect for 2015, but could be expanded in the future. That means if you are buying your student a $500 laptop for school, you still have to pay the sales tax on it.
About 17 other states have comparable sales tax holidays in place, most with limits similar to Ohio’s, Miller said.
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Kovac is the Dix Capital Bureau chief.
