Connecticut Tax Free Week 2016: Where & When to Get the Best Deals in Newtown

NEWTOWN, CT — Back to school in Connecticut unofficially begins with the 16th Annual Tax Free Week which, giving parents and students a break at the cash register for certain school-related purchases.

Beginning at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 21 and running until midnight on Saturday, Aug. 27, consumers can make qualifying purchases without paying sales tax, according to the Connecticut Department of Revenue. Qualifying items include clothing and footwear that costs $100 or less. This is a change from previous years where clothing and footwear that cost $300 or less was subject to the exemption.

Department of Revenue Services (DRS) Commissioner Kevin B. Sullivan said, “The ‘tax holiday’ has become a staple of Connecticut’s back-to-school shopping season. Many retailers schedule sales to coincide with sales tax-free week, which helps shoppers save even more money because sales tax is applied after the use of any coupons or discounts. So while the price of an item may start above the $100 taxable threshold, after discounts are applied, it becomes less than $100 and is not subject to sales tax that week.”

Where can you find the best deals in Newtown? T.J. Maxx on South Main Street has girls and boys clothing and accessories. Stock up on notebooks, pens, highlighters and index cards at CVS and Walgreens. And for a special little surprise gift to place in your child's backpack or lunch box, stop by The Toy Tree on Church Hill Road. Most retailers will have sales during tax free week but shoppers can save even more money by downloading apps like Cartwheel from Target or finding coupons online on websites such as RetailMeNot.

“Connecticut consumers plan their back-to-school shopping and retailers plan some of their best bargains around the annual tax-free week. We hope everyone will take the opportunity to make their shopping dollars go farther and give a boost to our state’s economy,” said Commissioner Sullivan.

The state expects about $4.5 million in Sales and Use Tax exemptions during the August tax holiday week, according to the DRS. On the DRS website at www.ct.gov/drs, visitors can find Information Publication 2015(22), Annual One-Week Sales and Use Tax Exclusion on Clothing and Footwear Costing Less than $100.
Connecticut is one of 16 states offering a tax-free holiday for back-to-school purchases, according to the Federation of Tax Administrators, which said Connecticut began offering the holiday in 2001.

According to the National Retail Association, the average family with children in grades K-12 plans to spend $630 on back-to-school shopping while the average college student or college family will spend $899 on back-to-college shopping.

— Image via Flickr Creative Commons