Establishes annual sales tax holiday for certain retail sales of computers, school computer supplies, school supplies, school art supplies, and school instructional materials.

A1162

ASSEMBLY, No. 1162

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman JOE DANIELSEN

District 17 (Middlesex and Somerset)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Azzariti Jr., Assemblywomen Donlon and
Peterpaul

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes annual sales tax holiday for certain
retail sales of computers, school computer supplies, school supplies, school
art supplies, and school instructional materials.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act

establishing an annual two month exemption
period under the sales and use tax for certain retail sales of school supplies
and supplementing P.L.1966, c.30 (C.54:32B-1 et seq.).

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.� a.� Receipts from retail
sales of the following products are exempt from the tax imposed under the
�Sales and Use Tax Act,� P.L.1966, c.30 (C.54:32B-1 et seq.) if the products
are sold to an individual purchaser for non-business use during the exemption
period:

���� (1)� computers with a sales
price of less than $3,000 per item;

���� (2)� school computer supplies
with a sales price of less than $1,000 per item;

���� (3)� school supplies;

���� (4) school art supplies; and

���� (5) school instructional
materials.

���� b.� As used in this section:

���� �Annual exclusion period�
means the period of time between 12:01 a.m. on the first day in August of each
year and 11:59 p.m. on the 30th day in September of each year.

���� �Computers� means electronic
devices that accept information in digital or similar form and manipulate it
for a result based on a sequence of instructions.

���� �Electronic� means relating to
technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical,
electromagnetic, or similar capabilities.

���� �School art supplies� means
items commonly used by a student in a course of study for artwork, and shall
include: clay and glazes; paints, including acrylic, tempera, and oil;
paintbrushes used for artwork; sketch and drawing pads; and watercolors.

���� �School computer supplies�
means items commonly used by a student in a course of study in which a computer
is used, and shall include: computer storage media, diskettes, and compact
disks; handheld electronic schedulers, except devices that are cellular phones;
personal digital assistants, except devices that are cellular phones; computer
printers; and printer supplies for computers, printer paper, and printer ink.

���� �School instructional
materials� means written materials commonly used by a student in a course of
study as a reference and to learn the subject being taught, and shall include:
reference books; reference maps and globes; textbooks; and workbooks.

���� �School supplies� means items
commonly used by a student in a course of study, and shall include: binders;
book bags; calculators; cellophane tape; blackboard chalk; compasses;
composition books; crayons; erasers; folders, including expandable folders, pocket
folders, plastic folders, and manila folders; glue, paste, and paste sticks;
highlighters; index cards; index card boxes; legal pads; lunch boxes; markers;
notebooks; paper, including loose leaf ruled notebook paper, copy paper, graph
paper, tracing paper, manila paper, colored paper, poster board, and
construction paper; pencil boxes and other school supply boxes; pencil
sharpeners; pencils; pens; protractors; rulers; scissors; and writing tablets.

���� 2.� Notwithstanding the
provisions of the �Administrative Procedure Act,� P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1
et seq.) to the contrary, the Director of the Division of Taxation in the
Department of the Treasury may adopt immediately upon filing with the Office of
Administrative Law, such regulations as the director deems necessary to
implement the provisions of section 1 of P.L.���� . c.�� (C.������ ) (pending
before the Legislature as this bill) and to maintain compliance with the
Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement, which regulations shall be effective
for a period not to exceed 180 days from the date of the filing.� The
regulations may therefore be amended, adopted, or readopted by the director as
the director deems necessary in accordance with P.L.1968, c.410.

���� 3.� This act shall take effect
immediately and shall apply to retail sales made during annual exemption
periods beginning at least 60 days following enactment.

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes an
annual �back-to-school� sales tax holiday in the State of New Jersey during
August and September.� During the two month period, the retail purchases of
certain personal computers with a sales price of less than $3,000, school
computer supplies with a sales price of less than $1,000 per item, and certain
school supplies and equipment made by individual shoppers for non-business
purposes will be exempt from the State sales tax.� While the tax holiday is
intended to provide financial relief to the students of New Jersey and their
families, the general public may also make tax-free purchases for other
nonbusiness uses during this time period.

���� Annual and temporary sales tax
holidays have been established in at least 19 states and the District of
Columbia, and have gained popularity and support in several others.� While some
states have opted to celebrate tax holidays at the beginning of the calendar
year or during seasonal holiday periods, a majority of states have established
tax moratoria during some portion of the late summer and early autumn
back-to-school period, as families prepare to send their children back to
school.� These tax holidays typically include exemptions for purchases of
educational supplies, consumer products, and clothing items that allow students
to face the challenges of the coming year.

���� Under the bill, tax exempt
school supplies and equipment during the holiday include: (1) school supplies,
such as pens and pencils, notebooks, and binders; (2) school art supplies, such
as paints and paintbrushes, clay, and glazes; (3) school instructional
materials, such as maps, globes, reference books, and workbooks; (4) computers
with a sales price of less than $3,000 per item; and (5) school computer
supplies, such as computer storage equipment, printers, and personal digital
assistants, with a sales price of less than $1,000 per item.

���� Unlike other tax relief
initiatives, the establishment of a back-to-school sales tax holiday in New
Jersey could be developed and implemented with minimal administrative effort.�
It would provide an administratively simple and effective way to cut taxes for
consumers that would require no special taxpayer forms or rebate applications.�
In addition, it would be economically beneficial to the State�s merchants and
small business owners by encouraging consumer spending during a period of time
when demand is typically soft.