Shoppers who nabbed deals in Virginia this weekend during its sales-tax holiday can head to Maryland to keep those discounts going.
The state is holding its first weeklong sales tax holiday since 2001. It started Sunday and runs through Saturday.
Shoppers can buy clothing and footwear priced under $100 without paying sales tax — a 6 percent savings.
That’s good news for families with school-age children. The National Retail Federation estimates that the average American family will spend $606 on back-to-school shopping this year.
“The holiday gives kind of a mini-stimulus package to working families,” said Pat Donoho, president of the Maryland Retailers Association.
Advocates also hope the break will help the state’s suffering retail sector by putting it on an even playing field with Pennsylvania, which doesn’t have a sales tax on clothing, and Delaware, which has no sales tax at all.
“We hope it will jump-start the fall selling season,” Donoho said.
Accessories are not included in the holiday, however. That means earrings and book bags will be taxed, but corsets and fishing vests will be exempt.
Donoho said Maryland retailers saw a 10 percent increase in sales during 2001’s tax holiday.
Maryland expects to lose $19.1 million in tax revenue over the week, said Christine Feldman of the Maryland Comptroller’s office.
Virginia wrapped up its tax-free weekend Sunday. Shoppers paid no taxes on clothing items costing $100 or less and school supplies costing $20 or less — a 5 percent discount.
The state estimates it loses about $4 million annually because of the holiday, which started in 2006, said Joel Davison, spokesman for the Virginia Department of Taxation.
Retail sales spike as much as 75 percent during the weekend, thanks to abundant advertising, the Virginia Retail Merchants Association told the Associated Press.
Annual momentum could push sales up even more in the future, said Barry DuVal, president of Virginia Chamber of Commerce.
“My sense is that as the sales tax holiday repeats itself on an annual basis, more citizens will become aware,” he said.
The District of Columbia canceled its annual back-to-school tax holiday in 2009 because of fears the city was losing too much money. Officials estimated the District was losing $1.3 million in revenue during tax holidays in August and November.
