Lawrence Specker | lspecker@al.com

Alabama back-to-school shopping

It's that time of year again when Alabama retailers drop sales tax on eligible back-to-school items. This year the state voted to officially change the date, moving it from the first weekend in August to the third weekend in July to allow more shoppers to take advantage of the holiday.

Tax will be exempt this year on certain items from 12:01 a.m. July 21 until midnight July 23. It will be the first time the sales tax weekend will be observed during the month of July.

"The date change ensures the tax holiday will occur every year before the start of the school year throughout the state," the Alabama Retail Association said.

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National Retail Federation

But first, let's look at some numbers

Just how many Americans will spend money this year on back-to-school items?

Total combined spending is expected to reach $83.6 billion, an increase of more than 10 percent over last year's $75.8 billion, the National Retail Federation reports.

NRF credits the spending increase to rising consumer confidence and more young people in school. If the prediction pans out, it will be the second-highest back-to-school spending level on record.

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Most popular items

Clothing will be the most popular back-to-school item this year. NRF data shows consumers will spend $10.2 billion on apparel, followed by $8.8 billion on electronics like computers and calculators, $5.6 billion on shoes and $4.9 billion on school supplies.

Parents said they will spend an average of:

$238.89 - on clothing

$204.33 - on electronics

$130.38 - on shoes

$114.12 - on school supplies.

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Electronics purchases

NRF asked respondents for the first time what kinds of electronics they will buy during the back-to-school shopping season. Here's a breakdown of what they said:

45 percent - said they would buy a laptop computer

35 percent - more than a third plan to purchase a tablet or calculator

1 in 4 - plans to purchase electronic accessories such as a mouse, flash drive or charger

“Schools are changing their classroom experience to include more technology including laptops and tablets,” Prosper Principal Analyst Pam Goodfellow said. “That is why many parents, specifically Millennials, are spending more during back-to-school season and taking advantage of retailers’ best deals to stretch their budgets.”

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Tamika Moore | tmoore@al.com)

College spending

And how about college students?

College students and their families plan to spend an average of $969.88, up from last year’s $888.71. Total spending is expected to be $54.1 billion, an increase from $48.5 billion last year and surpassing 2012’s record of $53.5 billion.

NRF said the increase in spending is due, in part, to growing college enrollment.

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Shopping platforms

Despite the rise in online shopping, the NRF reports many consumers will hit the brick-and-mortar stores to find the best deals.

57 percent - will shop at department stores

54 percent - at discount stores

46 percent - at clothing stores and online

36 percent - at office supply stores.

For those shopping online, 91 percent plan to take advantage of free shipping and 54 percent will buy online and pick up in-store.

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Alabama by the numbers

Here's a by-the-numbers look at Alabama during the tax free weekend:

13 - Number of states, including Alabama, with a back-to-school sales tax holiday

12 - Number of years Alabama has had a back-to-school sales tax holiday. The first sales tax holiday was in August 2006.

318 - Number of cities and counties that plan to participate in the 2017 sales tax holiday. Cities and counties had until June 21 to notify the state they would add their savings to the sales tax holiday.

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What's tax free in Alabama?

Clothing priced at $100 or less will be exempt from sales tax in participating cities and counties. Eligible items include belts, boots, caps, coats, diapers, dresses, gloves, gym suits, hats, hosiery, jackets, jeans, neckties, pajamas, pants, raincoats, robes, sandals, scarves, school uniforms, shirts, shoes, shorts, socks, sneakers, and underwear.

The sales tax promotion does not apply to clothing accessories, protective equipment, or sports/recreational equipment. Click here for the full list.

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William Thornton | wthornton@al.com

Computers

Tax-free purchases will also include computers and computer equipment with a selling price of $750 or less. Computers, computer software and school computer supplies will all be exempt during the three-day event.

The following computer-related items will be taxable during the sales tax holiday: furniture; any systems, devices, software, peripherals designed or intended primarily for recreational use; or video games of a non-educational nature.

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The Washington Post

School supplies

School supplies for noncommercial purposes valued at $50 or less will be exempt from sales tax. That includes traditional school supplies like glue and notebook paper, school art supplies, and instructional materials, such as reference maps and globes and required textbooks on an official school book list with a sales price of more than $30 and less than $50.

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AP Photo | Leah Hogsten/The Salt Lake Tribune, File

Books

July 21-23 is also a good time to buy books, which will be exempt from sales tax if they are $30 or less. Magazines, newspapers, periodicals or any other document printed or offered for sales in a non-bound form will not be included in the promotion.

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Lucy Berry | lberry@al.com

Need more info?

The Alabama Retail Association has everything you need to know about this year's sales tax holiday on AlabamaRetail.org. Happy shopping!