Tax-free weekend coming, but some upset at missing out

CORRECTION: The Comptroller of Public Accounts reports Texas shoppers are expected to save $87 million in 2015, with the program as a whole saving Texans approximately $1 billion since it began in 1999.

Summer vacation is coming to an end for most students in the Borderland. For parents, that means back-to-school expenses. And that’s why many are hoping to save money by taking advantage of tax-free weekends in Texas and New Mexico.

For both states, the tax-free weekend will be Aug. 7 – 9, with a variety of school essentials able to be bought without the sales tax.

The idea is to give parents a break on things they have to buy for their children to succeed in school. In Texas, that includes shoes, clothes backpacks and supplies like pens, pencils and paper as long as each individual item is under $100 dollars.

In New Mexico, the tax-free weekend includes many of the same categories but also computers up to $1000, and accessories up to $500. There are some other restrictions limitations as well on certain supplies, with the full listing available on the state’s website.

Saving on school supplies is a nice thought, and many families plan around the tax-free weekend to stock up. But for the Socorro Independent School District in Texas, and Gadsden ISD in New Mexico it comes a little late.

That’s because the tax-free weekend comes a week after Gadsden students went back to school. Two weeks, in Socorro’s case. And while it’s possible to plan around the delay, it can be taxing for families and teachers alike

“It’s pretty frustrating because the teachers will keep telling my daughter ‘Where are your school supplies? Where are your school supplies?’ said one parent ABC-7 spoke to. “But we tried to wait until the weekend to get all her stuff.”

The Texas comptroller’s office says the date is set by a formula coming from the state legislature that was designed to include the vast majority of the more than 1,200 school districts in the state.

“The goal of the tax holiday is to try to give parents a chance to get those lists,” said Chris Bryan, spokesman for the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. “Understand their shopping needs, get a sense of their budget, and really prepare for the start of the school year.”

While it may not seem like much to worry about as savings amount to $8 or so per $100 spent, the Texas comptroller states the program is expected to save Texans more than $87 million this year.