Alabama sales tax holiday on school supplies begins

BIRMINGHAM, AL (WBRC) -

People needing back-to-school supplies will be able to purchase them free of state sales tax and, in some cities and counties, free of local sales tax this weekend.

Alabama's school supplies sales tax holiday began at 12:01 this morning and will continue through Sunday night. Various supplies like computers, clothing and other education-related necessities will be exempt of state sales tax and, in some locations, free of county and municipal taxes.

Not everything is tax free. Non-education videogames, cellphones and sports equipment will not be exempt.

Not all cities and counties are participating with the state in the sales tax holiday. Jefferson County is not participating, so shoppers in that county will still have to pay county taxes. However, shoppers in some Jefferson County cities like Trussville, Birmingham, Leeds and Bessemer will be removing their city sales taxes.

To see if your area is participating, visit revenue.alabama.gov.

Here's the list of items that will be tax-free, along will some items that will still be taxable.

CLOTHING - $100 or Less, per article of clothing

EXEMPT:

Includes all human wearing apparel suitable for general use - Not an all-inclusive list

- Belts

- Boots

- Caps

- Coats

- Diapers

- Dresses

- Gloves

- Gym Suits

- Hats

- Hosiery

- Jackets

- Jeans

- Neckties

- Pajamas

- Pants

- Raincoats

- Robes

- Sandals

- Scarves

- School Uniforms

- Shirts

- Shoes

- Shorts

- Socks

- Sneakers

- Underwear

TAXABLE:

Clothing Accessories:

- Belt Buckles (sold separately)

- Briefcases

- Cosmetics

- Costume masks (sold separately)

- Hair Notions (barrettes, hair bows, etc)

- Handbags

- Handkerchiefs

- Jewelry

- Patches & Emblems (sold separately)

- Sewing Equipment & Supplies (pins

(patterns, scissors, tape measures, etc)

- Sewing Materials (thread, fabric, buttons,

zippers, etc)

- Sun glasses, eye glasses, contacts

(prescription or nonprescription)

- Umbrellas

- Wallets

- Watches

- Wigs & hair pieces

Protective Equipment:

- Breathing Masks

- Clean Room Apparel & Equipment

- Ear & Hearing Protectors

- Face Shields

- Hard Hats

- Helmets

- Paint or Dust Respirators

- Protective Gloves

- Safety Glasses & Goggles

- Safety Belts

- Tool Belts

- Welders Gloves & Masks

Sport or Recreational

Equipment:

- Ballet or Tap Shoes

- Band Instruments

- Cleated or Spiked Athletic Shoes

- Gloves (baseball, bowling, boxing,

hockey, golf, etc)

- Goggles

- Hand & Elbow Guards

- Life Preserves & Vests

- Mouth Guards

- Roller & Ice Skates

- Shin Guards

- Shoulder Pads

- Ski Boots

- Waders

- Wetsuits & Fins

COMPUTERS, COMPUTER SOFTWARE, & SCHOOL COMPUTER SUPPLIES -

A single purchase with a sales price of $750 or Less

EXEMPT:

COMPUTERS – For purposes of the exemption, a computer may include a laptop, desktop, or tower computer system which

consists of a central processing unit (CPU), and devices such as a display monitor, keyboard, mouse, and speakers sold as a

computer package. Computer parts and devices not sold as part of a package with the CPU, will not qualify for the exemption.

COMPUTER SOFTWARE

SCHOOL COMPUTER SUPPLIES – An item commonly used by a student in a course of study in which a computer is used

– All inclusive list includes:

- Computer Storage Media (diskettes, compact disks)

- Handheld electronic schedulers, except devices that are cellular phones

- Personal digital assistants, except devices that are cellular phones

- Computer Printers

- Printer Supplies for Computers (printer paper, printer ink)

TAXABLE:

- Furniture

- Any systems, devices, software, peripherals designed or intended primarily for recreational use, or

- Video games of a non-educational nature

SCHOOL SUPPLIES, SCHOOL ART SUPPLIES & SCHOOL INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL -

Sales Price of $50 or Less, per item (Noncommercial Purchases)

EXEMPT:

SCHOOL SUPPLIES - All Inclusive List:

- Binders

- Blackboard Chalk

- Book Bags

- Calculators

- Cellophane Tape

- Compasses

- Composition Books

- Crayons

- Erasers

- Folders (expandable, pocket, plastic

& manila)

- Glue, paste, and paste sticks

- Highlighters

- Index Cards

- Index Card Boxes

- Legal Pads

- Lunch Boxes

- Markers

- Notebooks

- Paper (loose leaf ruled notebook

paper, copy paper, graph paper,

tracing paper, manila paper, colored

paper, poster board, and

construction paper)

- Pencil Boxes & Other School

Supply Boxes

- Pencil Sharpeners

- Pencils

- Pens

- Protractors

- Rulers

- Scissors

- Writing Tablets

SCHOOL ART SUPPLIES - All Inclusive List:

- Clay & Glazes

- Paints (Acrylic, Tempora & Oil)

- Paintbrushes for artwork

- Sketch and Drawing Pads

- Watercolors

SCHOOL INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL – All Inclusive List: (Written material commonly used by a student in a course of study as a reference and to learn the subject being taught)

- Reference Maps and Globes

- Required Textbooks on an official school book list with a sales price of more than $30 and less than $50

BOOKS – Sales Price of $30 or Less, per book (Noncommercial Purchases)

EXEMPT:

BOOKS - The term book is defined as a set of printed sheets bound together and published in a volume with an ISBN number.

TAXABLE:

- Magazines

- Newspapers

- Periodicals

- Any Other Document Printed or Offered for Sale in a Non-Bound Form

Source: www.revenue.alabama.gov

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