The 2017 Mississippi Sales Tax Holiday will be held Friday and Saturday, allowing eligible stores in Picayune and Poplarville to sell clothing and shoes tax-free. The holiday takes place statewide. Many of the eligible items include things students need as they prepare for school, and with the new dress code that allows students to wear school pride shirts to class, Picayune Main Street Director Reba Beebe said this is the perfect time to buy them.
“We have so many stores on Main Street and around town that provide everything students need to prepare for school, including custom, monogrammed or original shirts with the school’s logo,” she said. “The whole town should be participating in this tax holiday.”
According to a Mississippi Department of Revenue release, the state’s Sales Tax Holiday will apply to all clothing and footwear costing less than $100 per item. Sales tax is due on any item costing more than $100. Multiple items costing less than $100 each in the same transaction will be tax-free. The tax holiday does not apply to other items not defined as clothing or footwear.
Stores across Picayune and Poplarville are stocking more inventory than usual to get ready for the tax holiday, Poplarville City Clerk Jane O’Neal said.
“It’s important for people to shop locally because if they don’t, these businesses will disappear and then they truly won’t have anywhere to shop around their homes,” Dancewear Connection owner Tayna Tomei said, who plans to allow customers to purchase items tax free despite not having eligible merchandise. “If you want to have the luxury of having shops around you, you need to support local businesses. That is why I always try to help out my customers.”
A short list of the eligible and non-taxable items include athletic socks, baseball jerseys and caps, belts, chef uniforms, coats and wraps, jeans, sandals and work clothes.
Some of the non-eligible items include aprons, jewelry, handbags and purses, golf equipment, wallets and sunglasses. A full list of eligible and non-eligible items can be found at the Mississippi Department of Revenue’s website.
The Sales Tax Holiday begins at 12:01 a.m. Friday, July 28 and ends at midnight Saturday.