Floridians are saving money this hurricane season as House Bill 7063 comes into effect. The recently signed bill implements tax-free holidays for disaster-planning items, encouraging people to buy qualifying items.
Through June 9 — and again from Aug. 26 through Sept. 8 — certain household necessities will be exempt from sales tax.
The purpose is to prompt citizens to stock up on items that would better prepare themselves for hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
The Florida Department of Revenue provides a list of tax-free items that Floridians are encouraged to purchase. The list covers a range of necessities, outlining common household items with a sales price of $30 or less. The qualifying list of household items includes:
- Laundry detergent
- Laundry supplies:
- Fabric softener
- Dryer sheets
- Stain removers
- Bleach
- Toilet paper
- Paper towels
- Tissues
- Dish soaps and detergents
- Cleaning/ disinfecting wipes and spray
- Hand sanitizers
- Trash bags
- Ice packs (with a sales price of $20 or less)
The bill also takes into account the wellbeing of pets, including many supplies necessary for pet evacuations:
- Bags of dry cat/ dog food (must weigh less than 50 pounds, must cost less than $100)
- Portable kennels/ pet carriers (must cost less than $100)
- Over-the-counter pet medications (must cost less than $100)
- Pet beds (must cost less than $40)
- Cat litter (must weigh 25 pounds or less)
- Pet pads (must cost less than $20)
- Manual can openers (must cost less than $15)
- Cat litter pans (must cost less than $15)
- Pet waste disposal bags (must cost less than $15)
- Collapsible/ travel-sized food/water bowls (must cost less than $15)
- Hamster or rabbit substrate (must cost less than $15)
- Cans/ pouches of wet pet food (must cost less than $10 each)
Items such as batteries, portable generators, smoke detectors, and more are also available.
