Well, we made it. Our community survived a statewide Eagles convention, an NBC-TV film crew taping a pilot of a new series, about 20,000 bicyclists and their entourage, and an expanded version of the Plymouth County Fair. Each of these events has left personal and financial impacts on our community, and I'm sure we are all grateful for the experience, as well as grateful that they are all over.

There's a certain sadness at the end of the Plymouth County Fair, you can often detect the subtle signs that summer is slipping away before our very eyes. The days are becoming shorter by a minute or two each day, and, as the sun sets earlier each night, we all realize that fall is looming.

For school age children, it means that the care free days are numbered. Mailings arrive from school, providing information on registration dates, fees, changes in personnel, and giving the date when school starts. For parents, it means that they will need to be coming up with extra money -- money for book fees, lab fees, lunch tickets, notebooks, calculators and the biggie: new shoes and clothes.

For the past five years, parents of school age children and everyone that wears clothing and shoes have been able to reduce the cost of their purchases from five to seven percent, thanks to the annual sales tax holiday. This Friday and Saturday, August 5 and 6, no sales taxes are charged on items of clothing and footwear costing less than $100 a piece. Uniforms and other items are exempt from the holiday, so check with retailers before making your purchases.

Iowa, Connecticut, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Maryland all passed sales tax holidays in 2000. The Iowa law was based on similar legislation passed in Texas. Texas, New York and Florida were the first three states to establish sales tax holidays.

The Iowa Department of Revenue and Finance did a study of the first sales holiday in 2000, and found that $31.1 million of of qualifying clothing and footwear was sold during the sales tax holiday, and that these purchased during the holiday period saved consumers $1.6 million in State sales tax.

The study also checked if retailers of clothing and footwear showed an increase in sales as a result of the sales tax holiday. Sales tax receipts are reported quarterly, and historically, the July - September quarter shows a dip in sales reported by vendors that sell clothing and footwear. The study was unable to determine if the holiday had enough of an impact to reverse the historical trend.

Helping retailers was an ancillary goal of the legislation. Providing meaningful tax relief for families is the goal of the holiday, and it has met this goal every year. Any time you can save seven percent, it helps your family's bottom line.

Naysayers that argue that families don't deserve tax relief on clothing this coming weekend simply don't get it. EVERYONE gets tax relief this Friday and Saturday. The only requirement is that you buy clothing and footwear that costs less than $100 per item.

If you feel guilty about the "cost" of this holiday, wait and buy your items on Sunday, or next week. The state will gladly take your money in sales tax. Do you have an extra seven percent to spend this year?

I firmly believe that this "holiday" is one of the best pieces of legislation that has come our way for years. Shop early on Friday and Saturday for best selection.

As always, I welcome your comments. You can reach me by email at tstangl@lemarscomm.net, telephone 712-546-7031, x40 or toll free 1-800-728-0066 x40.

Thanks for reading, I'll keep in touch. Feel free to do the same.