Parents are getting ready for back-to-school. In my household, we are already getting some back-to-school clothes shopping in, updating our school supplies and preparing for the year ahead. The beginning of a new school year is a time of excitement and anticipation for kids and parents, but it’s also a time of anxiety for many families faced with tight family budgets and the pressure of new purchases.
We are all well aware how inflation has impacted the cost of so many things, and we see it with the price of new clothes, shoes, technology and other back-to-school items.
Other states around the country have instituted “sales-tax holidays” to help relieve some of the cost pressures surrounding back-to-school time. Florida specifically has a back-to-school supply sales tax holiday where during this period many typical school supply items that are $50 or less, clothes and shoes that are $100 or less per item, and laptops, calculators, or tablets that cost $1,500 or less are sold sales-tax-free.
Florida’s sales tax holiday also includes puzzles, some books, and toys that teach reading or math skills.
I believe that we absolutely need a permanent reduction and all-out cut in so many taxes paid by Californians. However, in the very near term, California could easily implement a month-long back-to-school sales tax holiday to help reduce the cost burden on families, parents and teachers.
Click here to read the full article in the Santa Clarita Valley Signal.