Take advantage of the Sales Tax Holiday Aug. 5-7

BBB offers advice for consumers shopping this Tax Free Weekend AUSTIN TexasWith the new school year right around the corner Tax Free Weekend is a great opportunity to stock up and save on some of your back-to-school shopping needs. This years Sales Tax Holiday is Aug. 5-7. Tax Free Weekend means that items like school supplies clothing and footwear are tax free. For example if you spend $100 you save $8. Texas shoppers are expected to save an estimated $92 million in state local sales tax during this years holiday. According to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts all sales of qualifying items made during the holiday period qualify for the exemption including items sold online by phone or mail and with layaway. A list of qualifying items can be found here. According to the National Retail Federations annual survey families with children in grades K-12 plan to spend an average of $673 on back-to-school shopping. Total spending for K-12 and college is expected to reach $65.8 billion an increase from last year. To make the most out of Tax Free Weekend this year Better Business Bureau serving Central Coastal Southwest Texas and the Permian Basin recommends shoppers:

• Know the difference between back-to-school sale" and tax free items. Retail stores may advertise back-to-school sales because they know consumers are buying items for the upcoming school year. Certain discounts will still have taxes applied to them unless the item appears on the state comptrollers tax free list.
• Read the fine print. Retailers arent required to collect state and local sales or use tax on most clothing and footwear that are sold for less than $100 during Tax Free Weekend. The exemption applies to items that sell for less than $100 regardless of how many items are sold on the same ticket.
• Save your receipts. Youll need them if you want to make an exchange or return an item. Remember some items are non-refundable or have a 30-day return period.

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