For the first time in three years, Georgians will be able to purchase back-to-school supplies, clothing, and computer equipment tax free.
The Georgia Legislature discontinued the tax free holiday after 2009 due to the downturn in the economy. With revenue improving, lawmakers decided this past legislative session to bring it back.
But WSB’s Sandra Parrish found parents in Gwinnett County unhappy that the holiday is later than previous years, nearly an entire week after most schools in metro Atlanta started.
“All of the parents that I know of… have already bought our supplies and our clothes and all of our stuff, so it’s really of no use to us,” says Megan Foster of Snellville.
The only school districts in metro Atlanta that have not returned to class are Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fayette, Fulton and Carroll Counties.
Others say, while it may not be school supplies or clothes they are interested in, computers are a different story.
Teressa Carver of Sharpsburg says she waited until this weekend to purchase her computer from Vision Computers where the tax exemption will save her nearly $100.
“I’m very happy that the state is stepping up and giving the people something back,” she says.
Vision salesman Raj Mistry says the company expects a brisk business not only in their store but online as well.
“I would say sales should increase a good 30 to 40 percent,” he says.
He says included in the tax exemption is anything related to computers including printers, monitors, non-recreational software, and hard drives. Things not exempt include computer bags, gaming software, CDs or DVDs.