Reschedule tax-free holiday

By Published by The Editorial Board

Published: July 30, 2008

Parents of students in N.C. schools this weekend will take advantage of a tax-free holiday. Students – parents, really – are given a list of items needed to start the school year – calculators, notebooks, pencils, crayons, backpacks, plastic food bags, etc.
As they say, it adds up, especially if you’re buying for several children.
According to The Associated Press, the holiday—which begins Friday and continues through Sunday—lifts the 6.75 percent sales tax charged in most counties on a host of back-to-school items. Shoppers, according to the AP, are expected to save an estimated $9.2 million in taxes they would otherwise pay.
This is great for parents, who are incessantly looking to save money, and for retailers, who are helped by the promotion, which began seven years ago.
“As many families find themselves squeezed by the national economy with increasing prices for food, gasoline and other necessities, our tax holiday offers consumers a chance for some real savings,” Gov. Mike Easley said in a news release.
But some North Carolinians, namely parents of children who attend year-round schools, are indirectly excluded from the tax-free holiday. Year-round schools, and the thousands of students who attend them, began a couple of weeks ago.
In Rockingham County, New Vision School of Math, Science and Technology serves students in grades K-5 and operates on a year-round calendar. Central Elementary in Eden also operates on a year-round calendar, though parents have the option of choosing a traditional schedule.
Parents were given a detailed list of items to purchase before school began, and the students are expected to have these items when they sit down for the first day of class.
No savings there.
Thousands of students throughout North Carolina attend year-round schools. Detractors of the year-round schedule will argue that most of these parents choose this schedule, and exceptions shouldn’t be made regarding the tax-free weekend. But we disagree.
Easley promotes the idea of parents saving money for schools supplies, but in reality the tax-free holiday helps all N.C. consumers and retailers. Why not, then, schedule the holiday earlier in the year so that all parents can take advantage?