2014 Sales Tax Holidays
- Jan 17, 2014 | Gail Cole
Last updated, 9.5.14.
Updated, 6.6.14: The lists below have been amended to reflect the current state of sales tax holidays. Please note that the North Carolina sales tax holidays have been repealed, effective July 2014.
Sales tax holidays and tax free weekends happen.
You may consider them poor tax policy, as does the Tax Foundation. You may like them, as do many state politicians. In truth, your opinion doesn’t really matter. For or against, if you sell into a state with a sales tax holiday, you had best be equipped to handle it.
To date, the following sales tax holidays have been announced for 2014:
- Alabama: Severe weather preparedness sales tax holiday, February 21-23.
- Alabama: Back-to-school sales tax holiday, August 1-3.
- Arkansas: Back-to-school holiday, August 2-3.
- Connecticut: Back-to-school holiday, August 17-23.
- Florida: Emergency preparedness, June 1-12; Back-to-school holiday, August 1-3; Energy efficient holiday September 19-21.
- Georgia: Back-to-school holiday, August 1-2; Energy efficient holiday, October 3-5.
- Iowa: Clothing and footwear, August 1-2.
- Louisiana: Hurricane preparedness, May 24-25; Back-to-school holiday, August 1-2; Second Amendment holiday (guns, ammunition, etc), September 5-7.
- Maryland: Energy Tax Free Weekend, February 15-17; Shop Maryland Tax Free Week, August 10-16.
- Massachusetts: many items of tangible personal property for personal use, August 16-17.
- Mississippi: clothing and footwear sales tax holiday, July 25-26; 2nd Amendment sales tax holiday, September 5-7.
- Missouri: Energy efficient products, April 19-25; Back-to-school holiday, August 1-3.
- New Mexico: Gross receipts tax holiday for clothing and footwear, computers and school supplies, August 1-3.
- North Carolina-repealed, effective July 1, 2014: August sales tax holiday, first Friday-Sunday in August; Energy Star products, first weekend in November.
- Oklahoma: Clothing and footwear holiday in August 1-3.
- South Carolina: Clothing and footwear, August 1-3.
- Tennessee: Sales tax holiday for clothing, computers and school supplies, August 1-3.
- Texas: Energy Star sales tax holiday, May 24-26; Clothing and school supplies, August 8-10.
- Virginia: Emergency preparedness holiday May 25-31; school supplies to clothing August 1-3; and Energy efficient products sales tax holiday October 10-13.
State department of revenue websites often do not release information on sales tax holidays until close to the date of the holiday. The following sales tax holidays took place in 2013; dates for a 2014 holiday have not yet been announced.
- Puerto Rico historically offers a tax-free period for school supplies in July.
Breaking sales tax holiday news
Walmart and Apple have reportedly lobbied for a Wisconsin sales tax holiday that would waive sales tax on some computers and school supplies. The holiday has been proposed by Republican lawmakers and is thought to have a good chance of being accepted if the state’s budget looks good (a budget report is expected soon). However, some Wisconsin lawmakers worry that a sales tax holiday “would put a burden on small business owners who would have to reprogram their cash registers to not charge sales tax.”
How does your business handle sales tax holidays? An automated sales tax system helps.
