Texas Tax Free Weekend starts this Friday

Parents who contribute to the nation’s multibillion-dollar back-to-school shopping industry can save a few bucks next weekend. Texas Tax Free Weekend begins this Friday, August 7th, 2015. Details below:

Texas Tax-free weekend is set for Aug. 7-9. Most clothing, footwear, school supplies and backpacks under $100 will be exempt from sales and use taxes, saving shoppers about $8 on every $100 they spend. Sales tax must still be paid on some certain items, such as luggage, purses, wallets and watches.

Individual items priced over $100 do not qualify for the savings, though transactions that are more than $100 qualify if the individual items that are a part of the transaction do not exceed $100.

Overall spending on back-to-school needs has grown 42 percent in the past 10 years, according the National Retail Federation’s Back-to-School Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics.

The survey says families with children in kindergarten through 12th grade are expected to spend an average of $630.36 on back-to-school shopping this year, which is down from last year’s average of $669.28.

Total spending, according to the survey, is expected to reach $24.9 billion. That number rises to $68 billion when spending for college is included.

The tax holiday is not limited to those with school-aged children – everyone can take advantage of the savings.

The Texas tax break weekend has been an annual event since 1999. The legislature sets the dates.

For more information on Texas’ tax holiday, click here.