Savings are in store for North Carolina shoppers today, tomorrow and Sunday as the state observes its annual tax-free weekend, and local businesses hope for increased shopping in their stores.

According to the N.C. Dept. of Revenue web site, “G.S. 105-164.13C provides an exemption for certain items of tangible personal property sold between 12:01 a.m. on the first Friday in August and 11:59 p.m. the following Sunday ... Clothing, footwear and school supplies of $100 or less per item; school instructional materials of $300 or less per item; sports and recreation equipment of $50 or less per item, computers of $3,500 or less per item; and computer supplies of $250 or less per item will be exempt.”

Some stipulations apply. For example, the statute defines clothing as “all human wearing apparel suitable for general use including coats, jackets, hats, hosiery, scarves and shoes.” Therefore, clothing accessories, jewelry, cosmetics, protective equipment, wallets, furniture, items used in a trade or business and rentals are not covered by the exemption and will be subject to the applicable tax. A computer includes a central processing unit, monitor, keyboard, mouse and speakers since these items are deemed necessary in the operation of the computer. The separate sale of these items is subject to the applicable tax when not sold in conjunction with a central processing unit.

Local retailers are gearing up for the weekend, some said, and they anticipate much traffic and spending in their stores.

“We just think it’s going to be a wonderful weekend,” said Carolyn Wilson, area sales manager of Clinton’s Belk. Customers have been calling in all week, she stated, and they “seem to be excited and looking forward to this (weekend).” The staff at Belk is excited too, she added. “We’re so excited North Carolina has this now ... It will be a really big weekend, a big event.” As for what items Wilson expects to be big sellers this year, she noted that denim, plaid, scarves and bold colors are the apparel most youngsters will be interested in for back-to-school clothes.

Focusing more on selling school supplies this weekend is Jeff Wagstaff, manager of the local Walgreens. He said he definitely expects a spike in business this weekend. Although Walgreens has other items tax-exempt this weekend, he expects the “biggest jump in business” to come from school supplies, which, Wagstaff mentioned, is fully stocked.

Jennifer Slack, manager of Sampson Crossing’s Wal-Mart, also expects a “very big weekend,” she indicated. The store will have additional school supply stock as well as additional employees on hand this weekend to accommodate the expected influx of customers. Considering the state of the economy, Slack predicted that this year the tax-free weekend will be even more successful for the store. She feels this weekend will “probablybe bigger than the weekend before school starts back,” as more people will want to take advantage of the tax exemptions on clothing and school supplies for back-to-school shopping.

Clinton-Sampson Chamber of Commerce president Sherill Allen spoke about the weekend’s impact on the economy, and advocated for Sampsonians to “shop at home” this weekend. “On behalf of the Chamber of Commerce and its members,” Allen commented, “I would like to encourage everyone to shop Sampson first in the Chamber’s effort to promote the business climate in Clinton and Sampson County.”

Local school system superintendents also advocated for students and parents to take advantage of the tax-free weekend.

Sampson County Schools superintendent Dr. Ethan Lenker, who noted that he has saved most of his own shopping needs for this weekend, said the school system is sending Connect-ed messages to remind parents of the tax-free weekend. “ ... the bottom line is parents can save and get their needed supplies.”

Dr. Gene Hales, superintendent of Clinton City Schools, sees the weekend as an opportunity to aid students in preparing for the upcoming school year. “Our parents are able to provide more supplies and materials at a more reasonable cost. This helps them in this current economic situation do more for our students.”

For more information about North Carolina’s tax-free weekend, visit www.dornc.com.

To contact Amy Kelly call 592-8137 ext. 119 or send e-mail to sigov@myclintonnc.com.