Home › Business › Business News
Tax holiday kicks off school shopping
Big Country retailers anticipating big weekend as families outfit children for academic year
Sales tax holiday
• Created by Senate Bill 441 sponsored by Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, in 1999.
• Texas shoppers have saved $388.1 million since 1999 with the tax-free weekends.
• In 2007, shoppers saved about $52 million in sales tax, the record savings year to date.
Source: Texas State Comptroller's Office
More Business News Some Abilene store managers are looking forward to another banner sales weekend during the three-day back-to-school sales tax holiday starting Friday.
"We're planning on it being bigger" than the August 2007 sales tax holiday, said Valerie Smith, Academy Sports store director.
With sky-high gasoline prices that have only recently abated, "people are having to watch what they spend," Smith said. In past years, parents of school-age children would spread out their spending, but gasoline prices may be encouraging more of them to wait until they can gain the 8¼-cent sales tax exemption, she said.
The exemption includes the 6¼-cent state sales tax plus local sales taxes of 2 cents in most localities.
Academy's Smith hasn't noticed parents hanging on to all their back-to-school money. "Business has been strong," Smith said.
Roger Spivey, a store manager at Target, said he expects a big crowd. "With people conserving their money they're waiting to the last minute," he said.
But like Academy, Target has prospered in the pre-sales tax holiday weeks. "Actually, we're doing quite well," he said.
Spivey said he expects parents will buy the basics over the three-day special period: socks, underwear, bluejeans. Not everybody, he hastened to add: The younger set can be expected to demand T-shirts featuring Batman and other graphic designs.
If anybody cuts back on their spending this year, they'll probably do it with the quantity, perhaps buying two or three pairs of jeans instead of six or seven, Spivey said.
Shoes, athletic and casual clothes and backpacks should fly off Academy's shelves, Smith said. But she cautioned customers that some items don't qualify for the sales tax exemption.
Football jerseys are exempt because students can wear them to school, but football pants won't be tax-free because they're not classroom wear, she said. Same with shoes with cleats.
Also, items that cost more than $100, such as high-end sneakers, will be taxed, she said.
Lisa Dabney is a mother of two who said she will forgo the three-day tax-free window.
"I'm not a tax-free weekend type of person," Dabney said. She hates battling the throngs and finds too many of the items picked over, she said.
Figures from State Comptroller Susan Combs fuel optimism for a good sales weekend.
In June the state collected $1.8 billion in sales tax revenue statewide, up 10.4 percent from June 2007. By coincidence, Abilene's sales tax revenue for the same span increased by an identical percentage, from $3.12 million to $3.44 million, for that same reporting period.
Some of the June figures represent taxes for April, May and June from businesses that remit their sales taxes quarterly. June sales are the last for which the comptroller's office has reported figures.
Sales reports and projections from across the nation are considerably less bullish than in Texas.
USA Today reported that national retailers such as Abercrombie & Fitch recently reported dismal July sales, the downturn blamed largely on spiking gasoline prices.
The National Retail Federation reported that one-fifth of parents nationwide set aside part of their federal stimulus check from the Internal Revenue Service for back-to-school purchases. The finding came in a survey by BIGResearch commissioned by the retail federation, according to the sales organization's Web site.
The survey also found that the average family with school-age children expected to spend $594.24 on back-to-school items, compared with $563.49 last year. That's an increase of 5.5 percent, slightly higher than the June 2007 to June 2008 inflation rate of 5 percent, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers compiled by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Posted by JamieDuech on August 13, 2008 at 8:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Instead of waiting for the tax holiday and being restricted by the exemption limits, I have been doing my back to school shopping online through bargains websites like unodeals.com. I have been able to save money on my purchases and did not have to pay state tax on most items.
Posted by rvrm1969 on August 13, 2008 at 8:46 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Been doing the same on ebay.
Posted by ldchev on August 13, 2008 at 9 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Way to go guys, trumpet it over the land, we sure wouldn't want our politicians to go wanting for a cause now would we?
Yes I know they (politicians) are already aware of it, but why flaunt it to speed up the process of ending a good thing.
Posted by apricottx on August 13, 2008 at 9:11 a.m. (Suggest removal)
If you are not paying state tax, someone is breaking law. We buy online for business and personal and pay state tax. Chances are you won't get caught, but it is lawbreaking.
Posted by stamfordite on August 13, 2008 at 9:35 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Do we need any more proof that taxes inhibit the economy?
Posted by officerx on August 13, 2008 at 10:27 a.m. (Suggest removal)
apricottx...huh? Texas residents pay sales taxes on goods and services based in Texas, whether online, by mail, or in person (which, in that case, applies to any purchaser).
When an item is ordered from another state from a catalog, the purchaser living in Texas doesn't pay that state's taxes. Same for online purchases.
If that is breaking the law, please show me the statute. If that's the case, then there sure are alot of out of state businesses doing it by showing $0.00 on the receipt for the tax amount....
Posted by bigdaddy5 on August 13, 2008 at 11:02 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Individuals purchasing something online from another state is not required or mandated to pay the state sales tax. However, if you are in business and using the equipment in your business or selling the inventory to make money, you pay sales and use tax. Call your local comptroller's office on that one. We buy alot online for our kids however we also support our local retailers during this time so they will stay open and in Abilene. Its a shame that some of the stores like the Gap close because of lack of support.
Posted by rvrm1969 on August 13, 2008 at 11:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Well, I HATE shopping and I HATE crowds, so I try to buy a lot online other than groceries and necessities. But, I do frequent our local stores for basic things. I think it is the best of both worlds.
Posted by apricottx on August 13, 2008 at 2:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Well, my bad, I thought I had paid sales tax on Amazon.com, but, went back to look and you are all right. No sales tax.
Posted by cyndigarcia on August 13, 2008 at 3:54 p.m. (Suggest removal)
you know that is why so many stores are leaving Abilene everyone shops online and the local stores are missing that cash flow. Come on Abilene in a few years we will be a ghost town with tons of empty buildings
Posted by cyndigarcia on August 13, 2008 at 3:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
support your local business...
Posted by bigdaddy5 on August 13, 2008 at 4 p.m. (Suggest removal)
the local stores need to start selling their inventory online to take advantage too, they can't sit and wait for someone to walk in the door.
Posted by Tumbleweed on August 13, 2008 at 4:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Support you local business!!! I will spend my dollar where I get the most from it. Online, offline or connected to a fishing-line I don't care. Businesses go out of business for a multitude of reasons. But to shop local or at mom and pops just to keep them in business ain't happening in the Tumbleweed house.
I want the most bang for my buck. Besides the majority of what you are buying anywhere is made in China. If the corners store wants local shoppers they should sell local merchandise.
Harrumph!
Posted by cyndigarcia on August 13, 2008 at 4:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I understand to get the most from your dollar.. ME too... I just think the more we can to support the local business the better off our city will be...
Posted by abideejay on August 13, 2008 at 7:01 p.m. (Suggest removal)
It is a proven fact: If you spend your money locally, that same money will come back to benefit you! Even if you're spending it in a big-box retailer, that money will end up in the paycheck of a local employee that will then end up spending it locally, and the cycle goes on and on. Check the websites for your local stores. Sometimes there are online coupons that you can use in the local store. A lot of stores encourage you to sign up for an email list. They email out coupons that otherwise don't get sent out, and it doesn't cost them anything for paper or printing just to have it end up in the trash.
Posted by cougar on August 13, 2008 at 10:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)
just remember WALMART is NOT local!!!
Posted by Ranchero on August 14, 2008 at 6:11 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I like shopping online simply because I don't have to deal with someone's attitude!
Posted by bulldog2 on August 14, 2008 at 7:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
And you don't get an attitude online??? Customer service from online sites is some of the WORST!!
Posted by rampbrat on August 14, 2008 at 9:35 a.m. (Suggest removal)
My kids play roller hockey and we used to buy their equipment at a local sporting goods store. But the selection has gotten progressivly worse. Last time I went in to get a stick they had nothing but lefties. So now we order on line and even with the shipping its cheaper. We buy local when we can, but I'm not going to feel guilty for buying online or out of town if I can't find what I need here. It's called the law of competition.
(Requires free registration.)
Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.