7/30/2009 5:00:00 AM Officials push tax free Friday, Saturday
By STEVEN G. WATSON Associate Editor
It took 10 legislative sessions and several variations on a bill that made way for the state's first-ever "sales tax holiday" this Friday and Saturday.
All clothing and shoes priced below $100 will be exempt from taxation this July 31 and Aug. 1, with no limit to the number of items that can be purchased.
Some area stores are gearing up for the event offering discounts on items over $100, while others have even agreed to discount the state's 7 percent sales tax on all items in their stores regardless of price.
The bill's original author, Sen. Walter Michel and Lt. Governor Phil Bryant held a press conference at the Renaissance at Colony Park shopping center in Ridgeland Tuesday to promote the event.
Michel said he's been pushing for a "tax holiday" for nearly a decade now.
"I first saw the sales tax holiday in Texas and researched it," Michel said. "We started in 2000 talking to the retail federation and taking parts of other bills and molding them into one for Mississippi."
Michel said legislators planned the event to coincide with back-to-school shopping as well as the time when many clothing retailers are holding sales to make room for their fall and winter stock.
"This is normally a very slow time, but we're expecting Christmas-sized crowds," Michel said. "We're hoping it will be a nice little Christmas in July for retailers."
Michel said places like Renaissance in Ridgeland would especially benefit, hopefully drawing shoppers from out of state.
He noted that many shops with items normally priced over $100 may even apply steep discounts to bring them in line for the sales tax holiday.
Andrew and Jan Mattiace, of Mattiace Properties, Inc., said retailers at Renaissance at Colony Park are excited about the weekend.
"It comes at a perfect time for back-to-school shopping," Jan Mattiace said. "This will be an additional boost to end the season sales for our merchants and these existing markdowns create more items that qualify for the tax break."
"This tax break will motivate people to get out to shop and will create a spike in overall spending," Andrew Mattiace said. "Ancillary sales such as dining, fuel and possibly lodging will also be affected.
Jacqui Holmes owns the boutique "Wink" in Madison's Colony Crossing shopping center.
She said pretty much everything they sell is less than $100, but they do have items like jewelry and other accessories that aren't covered by the legislation.
As an added benefit Holmes said they plan on extending the "sales tax holiday" to all items in her store, essentially discounting 7 percent store-wide.
"We're really excited about it," Holmes said. "We're sending out emails to all our regular customers and on our board out front we're making sure people are aware of it."
There are 15 other states who offer similar tax-free weekends.
The legislation in Mississippi stipulates that after this initial "sales tax holiday" municipalities throughout the state can opt out next year if they so choose.
