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Back-to-school shopping: Which states have tax-free holidays?

Eighteen states will offer back-to-school tax holidays in 2015. Most states are in the South, though there are a couple of oddballs in New England and the Midwest. 

If you're lucky enough to live in a state that offers tax holidays聽for back-to-school shopping, this is your heads up - the first of聽those wonderful tax-free weekends began this past Friday, and your favorite retailers are likely to be wooing you with some of the聽.

We found 17 states that have confirmed their back-to-school tax holidays for 2015, plus one that probably will聽sometime in the next few days. Most tax holiday states are in the south, though there are a couple oddballs in New England and the Midwest.

Tax-free weekends everywhere tend to have a few interesting common features. Most will let you put items on layaway tax-free. Or if you make a final payment on a layaway item during the tax holiday, you'll get out of state sales tax that way, too. And online purchases are subject to the exemption, too, if you live in a tax holiday state.

There are a few nuanced points聽to be aware of while looking through this list, however.

Most states will enforce a dollar limit on purchases in certain categories. For example, a common limit聽we see is for clothing up to $100. What that actually means can vary from one state to the next, however, and sometimes even from one product category to another.聽For a dress costing $110, one state may exempt the sales tax on the first $100 of the sale, meaning you'd only pay taxes on the $10 left over. Another state may simply exclude that same dress from being eligible for the exemption since it's priced over the $100 threshold.

Another difference lies in whether聽"priced under $100" includes or excludes a price tag of exactly $100.聽Speaking literally, "under $100" would聽mean that $99.99 is eligible, but $100.00 is not. Remember that sales tax holidays are written and voted upon by state governments, and the law can be very literal.

Finally, remember that it's only state sales tax that is on holiday. If you pay city,聽county or other local taxes, you'll still see those on your receipt.

In short, you should always,聽always聽read the fine print so you aren't surprised at the cash register.

One more thing before we jump into the list: If you're looking to buy a wedding dress or stock up on disposable diapers, inexplicably, Oklahoma will be the place to go. Seriously.

States with Tax-Free Back-to-School Shopping in 2015:

Alabama

When:聽August 7-9
What:聽Certain school supplies, computers, and clothing
Notes:聽Not all counties will participate, so check this聽聽before you shop.

Arkansas

When:聽August 1-2 [PASSED]
奥丑补迟:听Certain clothing and footwear, clothing accessories, school supplies, art supplies and instructional materials.
Note:聽Various spending limits apply on all eligible items.

Connecticut

When:聽August 16-22 (1 week beginning on the 3rd Sunday聽in August)
奥丑补迟:听Clothing and Footwear costing less than $300 per item
Note:聽Does not include accessories or athletic clothing.

Florida

When:聽August 7-16
奥丑补迟:听Clothing, footwear, certain accessories, school supplies, personal computers and computer-related accessories
狈辞迟别:听Various spending limits apply on all eligible items.

Georgia

When:聽July 31-August 1 [PASSED]
奥丑补迟:听Clothing, footwear, computers, computer components, software, school supplies, art supplies, school computer supplies, and instructional materials
狈辞迟别:听Various spending limits apply on all eligible items.

Iowa

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听7-8
What:聽Select clothing and footwear
Note:聽Various spending limits apply on all eligible items.

Louisiana

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听7-8
奥丑补迟:听Just about any聽physical object you can buy, up to $2,500.
狈辞迟别:听Exceptions include cars, restaurant-prepared meals, and most service-oriented purchases like hotel rooms, dry cleaning or event tickets. Additionally, since the exemption only applies to state sales tax, shoppers聽can still expect to pay local taxes on their purchases.

Maryland

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听9-15
奥丑补迟:听Qualifying clothing and footwear up to $100
狈辞迟别:听School supplies are still taxable.

Massachusetts

When:聽August 15-16 is likely, but unconfirmed so far
奥丑补迟:听Most items up to $2,500
Note:聽Massachusetts has had sales tax holidays in the past, including last year, but聽the legislature has a habit of not approving it聽. As of today,聽聽says it's been approved by a "key聽committee" and may聽be up for a House vote this week. Fingers crossed!

Mississippi

When:聽July 31-August 1 [PASSED]
奥丑补迟:听Clothing and footwear聽priced under $100.
狈辞迟别:听The cities of Enterprise and Heidelberg are not participating.

Missouri

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听7-9
奥丑补迟:听Clothing, school supplies, computers
狈辞迟别:听Several cities, counties and districts will not be participating. The聽Missouri Department of Revenue has complete lists you can check.

New Mexico

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听7-9
奥丑补迟:听Qualifying tangible personal property
狈辞迟别:听Various spending limits apply on all eligible items, and every category includes items that are excluded by state law.

Ohio

When:聽August 7-9
奥丑补迟:听Clothing, school supplies and instructional materials
狈辞迟别:听Various spending limits apply on all eligible items.

Oklahoma

When:聽August 7-9
奥丑补迟:听Select clothing and footwear up to $100
狈辞迟别:听It's a great weekend to stock up on tax-free diapers in Oklahoma. And if you're looking to buy a wedding dress, wedding apparel will be tax-free this weekend as well. However, clothing meant for athletic use is not.聽See the Oklahoma Tax Commission's website for a complete list of tax-exempt items.

South Carolina

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听7-9
奥丑补迟:听Clothing, accessories, footwear, school supplies, computers, computer peripherals, software,聽and聽bed and bath textiles
Note:聽Accessories includes hats, scarves, hosiery and handbags, but does not include jewelry, wallets or eyeglasses.

Tennessee

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听7-9
奥丑补迟:听Clothing, school supplies and computers
Note:聽Various spending limits apply on all eligible items.

Texas

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听7-9
奥丑补迟:听Most clothing, footwear, school supplies and backpacks priced under $100
狈辞迟别:听Texas聽excludes clothing and footwear designed primarily for athletic use, but makes a nice distinction between athletic apparel and stuff that's more equipment than apparel. For example, a football jersey would be tax-free, but football pads and pants are not. Running shoes are tax-free, but track shoes and cleats are not.

Virginia

When:听础耻驳耻蝉迟听7-9
奥丑补迟:听School supplies, clothing, footwear, hurricane and emergency preparedness items, Energy Star and WaterSense Items
狈辞迟别:听Virginia previously had three separate tax holidays for back-to-school, hurricane preparedness and energy efficiency initiatives, but for 2015 they decided to roll it all up into a single weekend.

If you don't see your state on this list,聽there are a few other options to consider. Five states - Alaska, Montana, New Hampshire and Delaware - have no state sales tax at all, ever. And for back-to-school wardrobes, Minnesota, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, New York and Vermont all exempt certain clothing, footwear and accessories from state sales tax year round. Not a bad deal at all!

This article first appeared in .