Michigan House Republicans want to give Michigan parents a break with a sales tax holiday ahead of the 2024 school year.

With only three scheduled session days in August, next week will decide whether Democrats who control the legislature are on board with the plan.

Rochester Hills Republican Rep. Mark Tisdel introduced House Bill 5805 in June to provide a sales tax holiday for back-to-school clothing and supplies on the third weekend in August every year.

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The tax exemption would apply to clothing priced under $100, school supplies priced under $20, computers priced under $1,000, and computer supplies under $500.

“By supporting families with children and reducing the tax burden, we can help Michigan families find relief and build a more secure future,” HB 5805 sponsor Rep. Kathy Schmaltz, R-Jackson, told WSYM.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer proposed a similar sales tax holiday for school supplies on Aug. 16, 2022, just days before the start of school and after most parents had already purchased supplies.

Tisdel’s bill was referred to the House Committee on Tax Policy in June, and has remained there since.

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Michigan Democrats adjourned the legislature for summer break on July 31, and House leaders scheduled only three session days before school starts around Labor Day. Lawmakers are expected to return to Lansing on Aug. 13, 14, and 15, before taking another three weeks off.

While it’s unclear how much the tax holiday could cost the state in revenue, WSYM points to research from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy that shows states with tax holiday weekends typically lose between $3.1 million and $5.1 million, a loss kindergarten teacher Colleen Price told the news site is well worth it.

“Having it 5 cents easier or a dollar easier to support our schools is a step in the right direction,” Price said.

Neighboring Ohio has held a sales tax holiday for a few days in August since 2015, and have since expanded the tax exemption to 10 days, running from July 30 to Aug. 8, according to the Toledo Blade.

“We don’t have that in Michigan, so I took advantage of it in Ohio,” Bedford resident Meghan Dusseau told the news site. “I purchased back-to-school tennis shoes, book bags, lunch boxes, and shirts.”

“I think it’s great,” Toledo grandfather Tim Grady told the Blade. “Any time you save even a little bit of money, it’s always worth it.”

Ohio set aside $750 million to cover the sales tax holiday, while other states are also giving parents and teachers a break.

According to the Federation of Tax Administrators, a total of 17 states are scheduled for sales tax holidays for school clothing or supplies in 2024: Alabama, Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.

A Back-to-School Shopping Survey conducted by the personal finance site WalletHub in July found 3 in 4 parents believe schools ask them to buy too much, and 86% believe the cost of education is out of control.

Nineteen percent of parents surveyed told pollsters they take advantage of sales tax holidays, and 52% expect to spend more in 2024 than last year.

“In comparing this year’s back-to-school study to last year’s, several notable changes stand out,” WalletHub analyst Cassandra Happe wrote in an email to USA TODAY.

“One significant shift was the increased concern among parents regarding the cost of education,” she wrote, noting that 77% of parents are willing to go into debt for their child’s education, compared with 72% last year.

Deloitte released a survey last month that found parents will be spending $586 per student this year, down slightly from $597 in 2023. The 2024 sales are expected to generate about $31.3 billion.

Lupine Skelly, retail research lead at Deloitte, told The Hill parents are now in their second year of high back to school prices, and “we are seeing a lot more kind of frugal behaviors this year.”

“So, I think more people, and especially in the low- and middle-income groups, are saying they’re trying to stick to their budget,” Skelly said.

“I think retailers are really aware of what’s going on with this situation, and they’re concerned too,” she added. “I think this idea of like, ‘Hey, let’s offer these really great promotions earlier in the season.’ So we definitely saw that strategy to pull sales forward and kind of get people engaged earlier.”

Other research from Intuit Credit Karma found half of parents expect to delay essential purchases like groceries to compensate for more expensive school supplies, according to The Hill.

“What my family normally does is we buy now during the summer months for the fall. If we see really good sales, we try to take advantage and try to be as savvy as we can, to try to make the dollar stretch,” California mother of three Pascale Small told the news site. “I can do all that I can do to try to find the best deals I can do, all that I can do to make sure I’m buying my school supplies ahead of time and in bulk so that I’m not paying as much, but things are still costing more than they used to.”

“We ask parents, ‘What is the No. 1 thing that’s on your mind right now?’ It’s inflation and the economic struggle that so many families are in right now, and when we talk about back-to-school, that is just one of the main pain points for American families, because it brings into light just how much pressure we’re really under in this moment,” said Keri Rodrigues, founder and president of National Parents Union.