Barrington Will Work to Add School Supplies to His Successful Tax Free Weekend Law

District 31 State Senator Don Barrington wants to expand the Back to School Sales Tax Holiday to include basic school supplies. Barrington said all signs point to last weekend’s Sales Tax Holiday being a resounding success.

Barrington successfully enacted the Back to School Sales Tax Holiday law in 2007 after years of failed attempts by other legislators. Under the current law, created by Barrington’s Senate Bill 861, clothing and shoes valued at less than $100 can be purchased free of sales tax during the first weekend in August.

In 2009 Barrington plans to reintroduce his legislation to expand the Sales Tax Holiday to include school supplies and reference materials.

“For the second year in a row, the Back to School Sales Tax Holiday provided significant savings to Oklahoma families and provided a boost to our economy. All signs point to a resounding success for the second annual Sales Tax Holiday,” said Barrington.

“The next logical step is to expand the Back to School Sales Tax Holiday to include basic school supplies, reference materials, and other study materials. In 2009 I plan to reintroduce my legislation to expand Oklahoma’s Sales Tax Holiday,” Barrington stated.

In 2008 the Senate and House both approved Barrington’s legislation to expand the Sales Tax Holiday to include school supplies, Senate Bill 1149, but Barrington’s proposal was not included in the final budget agreement due to a tight budget.

“I’m confident we’ll be able to expand the sales holiday during the 2009 legislative session,” Barrington said. “We also should consider creating a sales tax exemption for charities that purchase school supplies for needy children.”