Amidst record-high inflation, Florida’s Back-To-School Sales Tax Holiday is providing some relief

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) - Families have already been feeling the pinch of record-high inflation at the grocery store and the gas pump.

“Especially with groceries and gas and all that stuff, we are absolutely all feeling the affects of that,” said Brittany Dollard, shopper.

But now the pressure is on for school supplies.

Inflation rose to a record 9.1% and now school supplies are up about 8%, according to the U.S. Labor Department. According to the National Retail Federation, early 38% of consumers are cutting back in other spending areas to cover the cost of items for the upcoming school year.

Many people aren’t hesitating to take advantage of the Florida Back-To-School Sales Tax Holiday.

“Well at Office Depot I’m getting things like glue, scissors, paper... all those things that we don’t always have enough of for every student,” said Meredith Goodnight, 4th grade teacher at Meadowbrook Elementary.

According to Florida Taxwatch, Florida families are expected to save about 100 million dollars between July 25th and August 7th.

“I’m super excited to get in there to see what kind of savings I get,” said Dollard.

Some items that are tax-free include:

-School supplies up to $50

-Clothing/shoes up to $100

-Computers and accessories up to $1,500

-Learning aids, such as like books and puzzles, up to $30

“Every little bit helps and my daughter started school at UF and that just reminded me, she needs a new laptop so we need to get on that this weekend too,” said Goodnight.

It’s not just students and teachers taking advantage of the tax-free items, some are stocking up on supplies for the office. “A lot of the things I use in the office are the same things that kids use in school as well...paper, pens, notebooks, all that good stuff, laptops, stuff like that,” Dollard said.

Even though the tax savings aren’t huge, it’ll be giving giving some relief to people’s wallets.

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