Editorials

It doesn't pack the frenzy of Black Friday, the traditional post-Thanksgiving/pre-Christmas spree that dominates shopper's calendars. But this weekend's sales-tax holiday has matured into a can't-miss event that's a win-win for cities, for stores and for customers.

Thank goodness it exists.

But any serious discussion of the sales-tax holiday would be incomplete without a reminder of the tussle of the summer of 2006. Earlier that year, Gov. Bob Riley had approved the removal of the state's 4 percent sales tax on many back-to-school items, setting the stage for cities across Alabama to drop their local sales tax — as other Southern cities had done — and help residents with one of their biggest expenditures of the year.

It's no surprise that concerns flowed here in Calhoun County. Plus, there's nothing wrong with cities being cautious and considering their options. In Anniston, Mayor Chip Howell voiced trepidation over the budget impact and the holiday's implementation. In Oxford, Mayor Leon Smith's simmering opposition led to the signing of a petition by Quintard Mall merchants urging him to support the sales-tax holiday concept.

Two years later, it's hopeful that most damaged feelings over comments made about supporting the sales-tax holiday during its opening year in 2006 have dissipated — if for no other reason than the success story that the once-a-year shopping extravaganza has become.

Crunching sales figures and revenue totals from the holiday apparently is difficult; Anniston revenue officer Jarrod Simmons told The Star that it's "almost impossible" to tell the effect the holiday has had on Anniston's tax collections. Similar stories are heard around the county. But the Alabama Retail Association, meanwhile, has said that sales-tax collections have increased in August of 2006 and 2007.

In the larger sense, the point isn't about how much money retailers may (or may not) make on a tax-free weekend, or how much money shoppers may save, or how much revenue a city may bring in — or lose.

What's good about the holiday is that it seems to work for all parties involved, not on a grand scale but on the margins that might make a difference.

Shoppers love it; that needs no explanation. Retailers bank on the notion that the holiday will be the magnet that draws in customers, many of whom will buy items not covered by the holiday regulations or will be spurred to spend when they'd rather save.

And the cities? It's a subtle, cerebral concept, but they gain from knowing they've supported an annual event that retailers and shoppers overwhelmingly enjoy.

(Here's a scenario: Imagine the sales-tax weekend in Calhoun County if Oxford, home to the county's two shopping malls, was not participating.)

This year, while the nation's struggling to weather the economy's troubles, anything that puts shoppers in the shopping frame of mind and fills stores with consumers is a welcomed stimulus. So, go shop. You'll lose if you wait.