Wednesday, July 30, 2003
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Wednesday, July 30, 2003 |
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Merchants ready for sales tax holidays By JOHN THOMPSON
The blue jeans are being folded, the shirts are being hung and Tony Davis is getting ready for a big shopping weekend. Davis, whose family owns Smith and Davis on the western edge of Fayetteville, one of Fayette's oldest clothing stores, is busy preparing his store for this weekend's tax-free shopping days. The four-day tax-free holiday begins at 12:01 a.m. tomorrow and continues until midnight Aug. 3. The purpose of the tax-free holiday is to stimulate sales and to lessen the financial impact on parents getting their children ready to return to school. "The first time this occurred, our business more than doubled, and we're looking forward to another busy weekend," Davis said. Davis said he's added staff for this weekend, and is also running specials to give shoppers even more of an incentive to buy those back to school clothes this weekend. "I really think people like pulling something over on the government," he said with a laugh. This year, the tax-free items list will be expanded and simplified to allow consumers the opportunity to purchase more products. Personal computers and personal computer accessories, such as wireless messaging devices, with a single purchase price of $1,500 or less will be exempt and the requirement to purchase a computer base unit has been removed. Across town at AIS Computers, near the Clayton County line, owner Tommy Turner is also looking forward to the weekend. Turner has additional inventory added, and said he hopes to see lots of shoppers looking for back to school computers. Items included in the personal computer exemption category are monitors, personal computer base units, keyboards, personal digital assistants, handheld computers, monitors, printers, modems, nonrecreational software and other peripheral devices. Computer and computer related accessories do not include cellphones, digital cameras, furniture and any systems, devices, software or peripherals designed or intended primarily for recreational use. School supplies bought for classroom use or classroom-related activities are exempt up to $20 per item. As with clothing and footwear, there is no limit on the number of items purchased. Included in this area are pens, pencils, notebooks, paper, book bags calculators, dictionaries, thesauruses and children's books and books listed on approved school reading lists for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. Sales tax will be due on the purchase of any item costing more than $20. The sales tax exemption is intended only for individuals and their personal use. It does not apply to purchases made for resale, purchases by businesses, items leased or rented, or items sold at sports facilities, theme parks, restaurants, public lodging establishments and airports. Additional information and a comprehensive list of exempt items are available at any of the Department of Revenue's regional offices or at www.gatax.org. Individuals can also get information by calling 404-417-6601 or contacting the Department via e-mail at salestaxholiday@gatax.org.
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