POSTED AT 11:22 PM ON Jan. 27, 2009 | PRINT | Email | SHARE | COMMENTS (7)

The IU Student Association is working with the Indiana Senate to pass a bill that would make Indiana the 19th state to enact a “tax-free holiday weekend,” giving all Indiana residents a cheaper way to make purchases for back-to-school necessities.

The Tax-Free Weekend and Back-to-School Purchases Proposal, Senate Bill No. 394, was introduced to the Senate in early January and is now in the tax and fiscal policy committee.

Senior Jill DeLuna, one of the directors of IUSA’s Legislative and Governmental Relations, and junior Andrew Hahn, vice president for Congress, met with Senator Vi Simpson, who represents Bloomington in the General Assembly and authored the bill in the Senate.

The bill will provide a “sales tax holiday” at the beginning each school semester and will take the sales tax off school items such as supplies, textbooks, computers and clothing for three full days.

“This bill is not just for Indiana students, but is also a stimulus package for Indiana families,” said senior Mark Reid, assistant director of Legislative and Governmental Relations for IUSA.

The legislation is not on the tax and fiscal policy committee’s agenda until after Feb. 4, Hahn said.

The idea began as the tax-free textbook initiative, but that only pertained to a small portion of Indiana residents. The current legislation reaches a broader audience, which gives it more of a likelihood of passing, Hahn said.

The Legislative and Governmental Relations committee is trying to rally various
Indiana schools to lobby for the legislation.

Lobby packets were sent to 39 Indiana schools’ student governments asking them to support the bill, DeLuna said.

In contacting other Indiana school governments, the hope is that other schools will support the bill and be willing to contact their state senator as well as other state representatives, Hahn said.

The bill has gained support from St. Joseph’s College of Indiana, the Indiana Retail Council and Purdue.

“We are starting to build a coalition,” Hahn said. “We are optimistic and realistic because a lot has to happen. We are fighting through the bureaucracy of the Senate.”
Passing any piece of legislation through government is difficult, especially bills that deal with the economy, DeLuna said.

Eighteen states and the District of Columbia have implemented a tax-free holiday, Hahn said. States such as Tennessee and Virginia are the model upon which the legislation is based.

“They are very popular, and there is a large turnout of people, a lot of news coverage, and it helps the consumers,” Hahn said. “It also benefits businesses because it attracts people to come to their stores.”