The state’s annual sales tax holiday begins Thursday morning and continues through midnight Sunday.

This tax break means a 7-percent savings — on top of any in-store discounts — for clothing, school supplies and personal computers that qualify as tax-free.

Here’s an overview of the tax holiday rules laid out by the Georgia General Assembly:

Spending Rules: Purchases priced below a maximum amount — $20 or less for school supplies and $100 or less for clothes — are exempt from the sales tax.

School supplies that are tax-free include paper, pencils, notebooks, lunch boxes, daily planners, dictionaries, calculators, poster board and scissors.

It doesn’t cover “supplies used in a trade or business” — briefcases, envelopes, textbooks.

Although, paperclips, sticky notes, White-out and tape are among the supplies that are specifically listed as tax-exempt.

Clothing supplies that are tax-free range from shirts, shoes, socks, and underwear to uniforms, pajamas, ties, formal wear and diapers. Some of the surprising supplies include fishing boots, roller skates, lab coats and shin guards.

Computers and computer accessories that are tax free include laptops, monitors, modems and memory, the exemption covers accessories such as cables, blank disks, computer docking stations, educational and financial software, printers and cartridges and PDAs, except those that allow voice communication.

The exemption does not apply to cell phones, video games, MP3 players, digital cameras and surge protectors.

One caution: Items purchased with a business credit card or business check are not eligible for tax exemption.

Rome News Tribune