sales tax holiday

As states grapple with huge budget deficits, some of them are eliminating sales taxes for back-to-school shoppers. But are sales tax holidays really a good value for consumers? Experts discuss the true costs of the programs and some of the alternatives.

Despite the searing weather and a lukewarm economic recovery, major merchants are expected to report growing retail sales in their August tallies on Thursday. But don't count on the kind of increases we saw at the beginning of the year.

What started as an experiment in 2002 is now an annual ritual. In states across the country, parents wait anxiously, school supply list in hand, for a "sales tax holiday" to make the cost of back-to-school shopping a little more bearable. This year, however, some shoppers are finding out that a...

On Black Friday, shoppers across America will set out in search of bargains on flat screen TVs, Verizon Droids, Snuggies and... guns? Only in South Carolina. The Palmetto State is offering its residents a sales tax holiday beginning on Black Friday. For guns. It is the only two day sales tax...

You've been putting your money in the bank rather than spending it, but the time is coming when you'll have to bite the bullet and buy those school clothes, that new stove or a computer for your job search. If you live in a state that offers a sale tax holiday, you can save a bundle by postponing...

The state tax holiday idea is spreading as the economic turmoil saps the income of middle-class Americans. The idea is that a state picks a day or more on which it waives state sales tax on purchases of selected types of goods. Some states use it as a carrot to encourage purchases of more...