Back to School sales tax holiday kicks in on Friday
With the start of a new school year fast approaching, state Rep. Fran Hurley is encouraging parents to take advantage of a state sales tax decrease on school supplies, clothing, shoes and other items over a 10-day period from Aug. 5 through Aug. 14.
“Back-to-school shopping can sometimes be a real hit on a parent’s wallet, particularly with costs rising this year,” Hurley said. “That’s why I supported a tax holiday that will help lower costs and help parents get the supplies they need for their kids.”
Starting Aug. 5, the state’s sales tax will drop 5% from 6.25% to 1.25% on common back-to-school items, such as book bags, crayons, pencils, notebooks, pens, scissors, school uniforms and other items students are expected to have. Some exclusions apply. To view a thorough list of applicable items and exclusions, please view the Illinois Department of Revenue’s online bulletin at https://www2.illinois.gov/rev/research/publications/bulletins/Documents/2022/FY%202022-24_N0522.pdf#search=sales%20tax%20holiday.
The sales tax holiday is a part of the Illinois Family Relief Plan, a package of measures supported by Hurley that has suspended state grocery taxes, frozen Illinois’ gas tax and doubled the property tax rebate. The effort also permanently expanded the state’s earned income tax credit, and includes direct income tax rebates for qualifying individuals.
“We want to make sure people know about this tax holiday and are able to take advantage of it,” Hurley said. “Also, please choose to shop local, so that we can support our area businesses and jobs as we begin this new school calendar.”
Included clothing items
The 10-day tax reduction includes clothing items costing less than $125 individually.
Clothing items, as defined by the law, include the standard items such as shorts, pants, skirts, shirts and underwear. The tax reduction will also apply to aprons, hats, caps and earmuffs, coats and jackets, belts and suspenders, rubber pants, lab coats, hosiery, scarves, bathing suits, school uniforms and neckties.
It also applies to footwear – shoes, shoelaces, slippers, insoles, boots, socks and sandals.
Excluded items
But it does not apply to ballet, tap or athletic shoes, roller or ice skates, ski boots, waders, or fins.
Shoppers also should not expect the reduced sales tax rate on accessory items such as briefcases, hair bows, handbags, jewelry, sunglasses or wigs. The reduction also does not apply to sports gloves, goggles, hand and elbow guards, life preservers, wetsuits, shoulder pads, shin guards or mouth guards.
Also excluded are protective equipment items such as breathing masks, hearing protectors, face shields, hard hats and helmets, respirators, protective gloves, safety goggles or tool belts.
Included school supplies
Binders, book bags, calculators, cellophane tape, blackboard chalk, notebooks, erasers, folders, index cards, legal pads, lunch boxes, pencils and sharpeners, supply boxes, protractors, rulers, compasses, and scissors are all eligible for the reduced tax rate.
So are glue, highlighters, markers, crayons and colored pencils.
Excluded items
Shoppers should not expect other art supplies to be eligible for the reduced rate, however. Clay and glaze, paints and paint brushes, sketch pads and drawing pads will all be taxed at the regular 6.25 percent rate.
Textbooks, reference books, maps and globes are all excluded from the “holiday” as well.
Electronics and computers will also be taxed at the regular rate. That includes computers and related supplies such as flash drives, memory cards, data storage, computer cases, cables, printers and ink.
Shoppers also should not expect any breaks while buying cameras, cellphones or handheld electronics.
The task of adjusting the tax rate for individual items will fall on retailers, who collect sales tax and remit it to the state.
Local News
We need real solutions to crime
Spread the loveBy Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327 Crime and safety concerns are the number one topic of all the calls and texts I receive. It seems that many politicians offer no solutions except the usual lists of ways to keep safe. I think everyone knows about locking…
Icy spill yielded plenty of good will
Spread the loveBy Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place • (773) 284-7394 Here is a giant shout out to our first responders in the community. On Jan. 9, when a sheet of ice descended on Chicago, I was walking the dog. Walking around Peck School was great.…
It’s a busy January in Gage Park
Spread the loveBy Joan Hadac Neighborhood correspondent at large Greetings, Gage Parkers! I’m pleased to be filling in this week for Karen Sala. It’s fun for me to report on Gage Park, the neighborhood where I lived for the first 26 years of my life. There’s always something happening in this big, exciting part of…
You can bank on good service here
Spread the loveBy Kathy Headley Your correspondent in Chicago Lawn and Marquette Manor 6610 S. Francisco • (773) 776-7778 In this world of corporate takeovers, it is kind of hard to feel safe in the hands of big business. First, we have to supply some of our personal information to the automated system. Then there’s…
Palos Park police to hold active shooter drill
Spread the loveFrom staff reports Palos Park Police will fine tune their strategies for dealing with an active shooter to ensure the safety of both officers and citizens later this month. The end goal of the January 30 drlll is to test the department’s active shooter response plans and fine tune them. “Palos Park effective…
Richards’ Principal walks 24 hours for a cause
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Most people spend New Year’s Day relaxing. Richards High School Principal Dr. Mike Jacobson spent it on the treadmill. For the second year in a row, Jacobson inspired generous donations of more than $20,000 on New Year’s Day by walking 24 hours on a treadmill without stopping. All of the money raised goes directly…
Victress Women’s Wellness Center sets goals for 2022
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Empowering women in the new year is Victress, a wellness center for women, in Palos Heights. The center opened in October at 7120 W. 127th St. and welcomed in the new year with a goal-setting seminar open to women in the local community called, Achieve 2022: This year set goals,…
Broadcast news — Palos Heights’ Channel 4 has big 2021
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva The first Palos Heights city council meeting of 2022 featured a few minutes of bragging about Channel 4’s success in 2021. The local cable channel had a record-breaking year and Alderman Jerry McGovern was more than happy to run down the happy totals at Tuesday’s board meeting at City Hall.…
Obituaries for Jan. 20, 2022
Spread the loveTHERESA M. BALDWIN Theresa M. Baldwin (nee Boxlietner), age 76, passed away December 12, 2021. Beloved wife of Richard Baldwin; loving mother of Michael Kresch, Kenneth Kresch, Crystal Nelson and Denise Baldwin; dear grandmother of Samantha Peters, Dennis Nelson, Devorie Nelson, Korin Leeth, Kayla Nelson, Kaylee Nelson, Travis Spagnola, Kyle Kresch, Sydney Kresch,…
Experienced bakers buy The Great American Bagel in Palos Heights
Spread the loveNew owners nearly double the menu for breakfast, lunch By Cosmo Hadac When The Great American Bagel’s shop in Palos Heights changed hands late last year, the new owners who walked in the door weren’t exactly new. Manny Rios Sr. and his wife, Silvia, have nearly 50 years of combined experience in…
Neighbors
Illinois child tax credit: who gets it, how much is it?
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com In the final hours of their spring legislative session, Illinois lawmakers approved a tax credit of up to about $300 for families with young children. The credit is available to Illinoisans with children under age 12 who qualify for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, or EITC. Although…
Illinois’ ban on ‘bump stocks’ remains in place despite U.S. Supreme Court decision
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – An Illinois law banning the sale and use of “bump stocks” and other devices that increase the firing power of semiautomatic weapons remains in place, at least for now, despite a U.S. Supreme Court decision Friday striking down a federal ban on such items. “Illinois law…
Another Choate Mental Health Center employee indicted for abuse of resident
By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com Another caregiver at Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center in Anna is facing charges for abusing a patient. A grand jury indicted Joseph A. Clark, 24, of Grand Chain, on a felony charge of aggravated battery and a misdemeanor charge of battery. Clark pinned a Choate resident to…
State highway shootings decline as critics sue over ‘dragnet surveillance’
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois State Police say an automated license plate reader program has helped the agency identify witnesses or suspects in 82 percent of highway shooting cases this year, including all eight that resulted in a death. But as the state looks to further expand its network of more than…
Illinois’ ban on ‘bump stocks’ remains in place despite U.S. Supreme Court decision
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – An Illinois law banning the sale and use of “bump stocks” and other devices that increase the firing power of semiautomatic weapons remains in place, at least for now, despite a U.S. Supreme Court decision Friday striking down a federal ban on such items. “Illinois law…
Just weeks before Republican National Convention, Illinois GOP chair announces resignation
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Halfway through the 2024 election cycle and just a few weeks away from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Illinois GOP Chair Don Tracy on Wednesday announced his resignation as head of the state Republican Party. Tracy, who’d held the job since February 2021, explained his resignation in…
Pritzker signs bill creating new Department of Early Childhood
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed legislation Tuesday creating a new cabinet-level state agency dedicated to early childhood education and development. The new Department of Early Childhood, which will become operational in July 2026, will take over programs currently housed across three state agencies, including funding for preschool…
Speaker Welch rebuffs lawsuit from would-be staff union as ‘forum shopping’
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch is urging a Cook County judge to dismiss a lawsuit members of his staff filed against him last month seeking to force recognition of their union. In a new filing Monday, attorneys for Welch argued the Illinois Legislative Staff Association has no…
Advocates say SCOTUS ruling paves way for law ensuring abusers have guns confiscated
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com After the U.S. Supreme Court last week upheld a federal law that bars those under domestic violence-related restraining orders from owning guns, victim advocates say Illinois lawmakers should pass a measure to ensure firearms are actually confiscated in those situations. The legislation has been stalled for more than…
Communities, commission push Pritzker admin for more prison plan details
By DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com Jimmy Soto spent more than 42 years wrongfully imprisoned in Illinois Department of Corrections facilities. In 2020, he was moved to the “F-House” at Stateville Correctional Center in Joliet, a condemned unit, not because he was being punished, but because it was where the facility was housing individuals…