RALEIGH ó Gov. Mike Easley today announced that the state’s seventh annual state and local sales tax holiday will be Friday, Aug. 1 through Sunday, Aug. 3.
Last year the governor signed a law that added school instructional materials, such as reference books, maps, globes, textbooks and workbooks with an individual price tag of up to $300, to the list of items included as exempt from the sales tax. Previously, the price limit was $100.
“As many families find themselves squeezed by the national economy with increasing prices for food, gasoline and other necessities, our tax holiday offers consumers a chance for some real savings,” Easley said.
“With all the needs the start of a new school year brings, this is a way for families to stretch their hard-earned money a bit farther and an opportunity to generate significant business for our retailers.”
During the tax holiday weekend, consumers will not pay sales tax on the following items: clothes and footwear costing less than $100 per item; school supplies such as pens, pencils, paper, notebooks, textbooks, book bags, lunch bags and calculators costing less than $100 per item; sports and recreation equipment costing $50 or less per item; computers costing less than $3,500 and computer supplies costing less than $250 per item.
An all-inclusive list of items that qualify as “school supplies” during the sales tax holiday is available at the N.C. Department of Revenue’s web site: http://www.dornc.com/taxes/sales/holiday_4-08.pdf or at the end of this story.
The back-to-school sales tax holiday was enacted by the General Assembly and signed into law by Easley in 2001.
In November, consumers will receive another reprieve from the sales tax with the governor’s first tax holiday on energy-efficient items.
During the first weekend of November, specific “Energy Star” qualified appliances such as washing machines, freezers and refrigerators, air conditioners and other items will be exempt from sales tax.

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List of items exempt during the sales tax holiday

G.S. 105-164.13C authorizes a sales tax holiday in North Carolina. Sales and use taxes do not apply
to the following items of tangible personal property that are sold between 12:01 A.M. on the first Friday
of August and 11:59 P.M. the following Sunday:
1. Clothing with a sales price of $100 or less per item.
ěClothingî is defined as all apparel suitable for general use including coats,
jackets, hats, hosiery, scarves and shoes. The items listed below are included in the term and
are therefore exempt from tax during the sales tax holiday period if the sales price of the item is
$100 or less. This list is not all-inclusive.

Aprons, household and shop
Athletic supporters
Baby receiving blankets
Bandannas
Bathing suits and caps; beach capes and
coats
Belts and suspenders
Boots; overshoes
Coats, jackets, capes, and wraps
Costumes (does not include costume
masks sold separately)
Diapers (children and adults, including
disposables)
Earmuffs; gloves and mittens for general
use; hats and caps; hosiery; scarves
Formal wear (does not include rentals)
Garters and garter belts; girdles; leotards
and tights; panty hose; socks; stockings
and footlets; underwear
Insoles for shoes
Jogging suits
Lab coats
Neckties
Rainwear
Rubber pants
Sandals; shoes and shoelaces; slippers;
sneakers; steel-toed shoes
Uniforms (athletic and nonathletic uniforms
when purchased for nonbusiness use)
Wedding apparel (does not include rentals)

2. Sport or recreational equipment with a sales price of $50 or less per item.
ěSport or recreational equipmentî is defined as items designed for human use and worn in
conjunction with an athletic or recreational activity that are not suitable for general use. The items
listed below are included in the term and are therefore exempt from tax during the holiday period
if the sales price of the item is $50 or less. This list is not all-inclusive.

Ballet and tap shoes
Cleated or spiked athletic shoes
Gloves (baseball, bowling, boxing,
hockey, golf, and other sports)
Goggles
Hand and elbow guards
Helmets (bicycle, skating, baseball, and
other sports)
Life preservers and vests
Mouth guards
Roller and ice skates
Shin guards
Shoulder pads
Ski boots
Waders, wetsuits, and fins

3. Computers with a sales price of three thousand five hundred dollars ($3,500) or less per
item.
A ěcomputerî is an electronic device that accepts information in digital or similar form and
manipulates it for a result based on a sequence of instructions. For purposes of the exemption
during the sales tax holiday, a computer includes a central processing unit, monitor, keyboard,
mouse and speakers since these items are deemed to be necessary in the operation of the
computer. The separate sale of a monitor, keyboard, mouse, or speakers is subject to the
applicable tax when the item is not sold in conjunction with a central processing unit. Peripherals
are not considered part of a computer and are subject to the applicable tax notwithstanding that
they may be sold with the computer as a package. Peripherals must be separately stated on the
invoice and the appropriate tax charged on those items.

4. Computer supplies with a sales price of $250 or less per item.
A ěcomputer supplyî is an item commonly used by a student in a course of study in which a
computer is used. The items listed below are included in the term and are therefore exempt from
tax during the holiday period if the sales price of the item is $250 or less. This list is all-inclusive.

Computer storage media, including diskettes and compact disks
Handheld electronic schedulers, except devices that are cellular phones
Personal digital assistants, except devices that are cellular phones
Computer printers
Printer supplies for computers, including printer paper and printer ink

5. School supplies with a sales price of $100 or less per item.
A ěschool supplyî is an item commonly used by a student in a course of study; the term includes
school art supplies and school instructional materials. The items listed below are included in the
term and are therefore exempt from tax during the holiday period if the sales price of the item is
$100 or less. This list is all-inclusive.

Binders
Blackboard chalk
Book bags
Calculators
Cellophane tape
Clay and glazes
Compasses
Composition books
Crayons
Erasers
Folders (expandable, pocket, plastic, and
manila)
Glue, paste and paste sticks
Highlighters
Index card boxes
Index cards
Legal pads
Lunch boxes
Markers
Notebooks
Paintbrushes for artwork
Paints (acrylic, tempora, and oil)
Paper (loose leaf ruled notebook paper,
copy paper, graph paper, tracing paper,
manila paper, colored paper, poster
board, and construction paper)
Pencil boxes and other school supply boxes
Pencil sharpeners
Pencils
Pens
Protractors
Rulers
Scissors
Sketch and drawing pads
Watercolors
Writing tablets

6. School instructional materials with a sales price of $300 or less
per item.
ěSchool instructional materialî is written material commonly used by a student in a course of study
as a reference and to learn the subject being taught. The term is mutually exclusive of the terms
ěschool supplyî and ěcomputer supply.î The items listed below are included in the term and are
therefore exempt from tax during the holiday period if the sales price of the item is $300 or less
per item. (Prior to the 2008 holiday, these items were categorized as ěschool suppliesî and were
exempt during the holiday period if the sales price of the item was $100 or less per item.) This list
is all-inclusive.

Reference books
Reference maps and globes
Textbooks
Workbooks