If you haven”t purchased back-to-school clothes yet, this weekend may be a good time to do it. Friday and Saturday, stores across the state will participate in Mississippi”s third annual sales-tax holiday, a 48-hour time period during which specific clothing and footwear is exempt from the local sales tax.
But don”t count your Nikes too fast: Items costing more than $100 are still subject to sales tax, as are layaways. Accessories like jewelry are also still subject to sales tax, as are cleats, some sports apparel, school supplies and electronics.
However, a wide variety of apparel and footwear is eligible, and a full list is available on the Mississippi Department of Revenue”s website at http://www.dor.ms.gov/.
As a general rule, if it can be worn on the body and is below $100, it is most likely exempt.
Some eligible items in Mississippi include baby clothes, blouses, boots, coats, dresses, jeans, jogging suits, pants, raincoats, socks, undergarments, cowboy boots, dress shoes, hiking boots, non-cleated running shoes and tennis shoes.
The cities of Bolton, Crenshaw, Heidelberg and Magnolia will not participate this year.
Alabama”s sales-tax holiday will be held Aug. 5-7 and will offer sales-tax exemption for some school supplies below $50 per item and computers totaling less than $750 per item.
A full list of eligible items can be found at http://www.ador.state.al.us/.
Carmen K. Sisson is the former news editor at The Dispatch.
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