MISSOURI SALES TAX HOLIDAY AUGUST 7-9

well, it's that time of year again ... where some counties/municipalities participate in the sales tax holiday, and where others, well, simply don't.

so here is what you need to know (that is, if you care) ...

cities that will not participate in this "holiday" are:

Alton
Ash Grove
Ashland
Aurora
Ballwin
Battlefield
Bellerive Acres
Berkeley
Beverly Hills
Black Jack
Blackwater
Bland
Bloomfield
Bolivar
Boonville
Branson
Brentwood
Bridgeton
Byrnes Mill
Cabool
California
Camdenton
Cameron
Canton
Cape Girardeau
Carl Junction
Carthage
Cassville
Centertown
Chamois
Charlack
Chillicothe
Claycomo
Clayton
Clinton
Collins
Columbia
Cool Valley
Crystal City
Des Peres
Desloge
DeSoto
Doniphan
Edmundson
Eldon
Eldorado Springs
Ellisville
Ellsinore
Elsberry
Everton
Fair Grove
Farmington
Fayette
Fenton
Ferguson
Festus
Flint Hill
Freeman
Fremont Hills
Frontenac
Fulton
Garden City
Gerald
Glasgow
Granby
Grandin
Grant City
Green City
Greendale
Half Way
Hartville
Hawk Point
Hayti
Higginsville
Hollister
Holts Summit
Houston
Ironton
Jane
Jefferson City
Joplin
Kennett
Kingdom City
Kirkwood
Koshkonong
Ladue
Laurie
Leadington
Liberal
Licking
Loma Linda
Malden
Manchester
Maplewood
Marble Hill
Marceline
Marlborough Village
Marshfield
Marthasville
Merriam Woods Village
Meta
Moberly
Montgomery
Moscow Mills
Mount Vernon
Mountain Grove
Mountain View
Naylor
Neosho
New Haven
New Madrid
New Melle
Nixa
Noel
Norborne
North Kansas City
Northwoods
Oak Grove
Oakland
Osage Beach
Overland
Owensville
Ozark
Palmyra
Paris
Pattonsburg
Peculiar
Pevely
Platte City
Platte Woods
Poplar Bluff
Purdy
Qulin
Reeds Spring
Richmond
Richmond Heights
Riverside
Rock Hill
Rockaway Beach
Savannah
Sedalia
Seligman
Shelbina
Shrewsbury
Skidmore
Smithton
Smithville
Springfield
St Ann
St Elizabeth
St Mary
St Peters
Ste Genevieve
Stockton
Sugar Creek
Taos
Thayer
Town & Country
Trenton
Twin Oaks
University City
Urich
Vandalia
Velda
Walnut Grove
Warson Wood
Washburn
Waynesville
Webster Grove
West Plains
Willard
Willow Springs

so, i'm thinking that the only mall available with no taxes whatsoever would be chesterfield mall, and the mills mall, and maybe even the outlet mall in warrenton (but i'm not 100% on that one) ... right?

west county i believe is in des peres, the galleria i think is in richmond heights, northwest plaza is in st. ann, the mall in st. peters is out ... if you can think of any other ones, please let me know.

and the rules for this holiday are as follows:

Back to School Sales Tax Holiday - Information for Consumers
Section 144.049, RSMo, establishes a sales tax holiday effective during a three-day period beginning at 12:01 a.m. on the first Friday in August and ending at midnight on the Sunday following. Certain back-to-school purchases, such as clothing, school supplies, computers, and other items as defined by the statute, are exempt from sales tax for this time period only.

The sales tax holiday applies to state and local sales taxes when a local jurisdiction chooses to participate in the holiday. However, local jurisdictions can choose to not participate in the holiday if they enact an ordinance to not participate and notify the department 45 days prior to the sales tax holiday. If the jurisdiction had previously enacted an ordinance to not participate in the holiday and later decided to participate, it must enact a new ordinance to participate and notify the department 45 days prior to the sales tax holiday.


If one or all of your local taxing jurisdictions are not participating in the sales tax holiday, the state's portion of the tax rate (4.225%) will remain exempt for the sale of qualifying sales tax holiday items.


The sales tax exemption is limited to:
Clothing – any article having a taxable value of $100 or less
School supplies – not to exceed $50 per purchase
Computer software – taxable value of $350 or less
Personal computers – not to exceed $3,500
Computer peripheral devices – not to exceed $3,500
Qualifying Items
Section 144.049, RSMo, defines items exempt during the sales tax holiday as:

“Clothing” - any article of wearing apparel, including footwear, intended to be worn on or about the human body. The term shall include but not be limited to cloth and other material used to make school uniforms or other school clothing. Items normally sold in pairs shall not be separated to qualify for the exemption. The term shall not include watches, watchbands, jewelry, handbags, handkerchiefs, umbrellas, scarves, ties, headbands, or belt buckles.

“School supplies” - any item normally used by students in a standard classroom for educational purposes, including but not limited to, textbooks, notebooks, paper, writing instruments, crayons, art supplies, rulers, book bags, backpacks, handheld calculators, chalk, maps, and globes. The term shall not include watches, radios, CD players, headphones, sporting equipment, portable or desktop telephones, copiers or other office equipment, furniture, or fixtures. School supplies shall also include computer software having a taxable value of three hundred fifty dollars or less.

“Personal computers” - a laptop, desktop, or tower computer system which consists of a central processing unit, random access memory, a storage drive, a display monitor, and a keyboard and devices designed for use in conjunction with a personal computer, such as a disk drive, memory module, compact disk drive, daughterboard, digitalizer, microphone, modem, motherboard, mouse, multimedia speaker, printer, scanner, single-user hardware, single-user operating system, soundcard, or video card.

disco fever ...

so i've got a new job, which is pretty cool.

but what's even MORE cool you ask?

well, for the past week, the building has been piping DISCO music through the speakers. that's right, good old-fashioned 70's music.

*sigh*

i LOVE this place!

i'm sure it won't last, but i'm REALLY appreciating hearing songs that i grew up with.

and here's a little secret ... sometimes, when no one is looking, i sing and dance in my office. yep, that's what i said - i sing AND dance. i'm not singing loudly, or dancing wildly - but i AM enjoying myself.

yep - i'm working, singing and dancing.

don't hate.

$10 off $40.00 purchase at Walgreens ...

YAY! today AND tomorrow you can get $10 off your $40 purchase at Walgreens!

Enjoy!

Click here if title link doesn't work: http://www.walgreens.com/hotbuys/default.jsp?ec=hn583_getcoupon

Another $5 Walgreen's Coupon ... YAY!

hey, you're probably going to go there anyway, might as well save $5. just click on the title.

NOTE: sometimes the links don't work if you are getting this in your e-mail, so you might have to either go to the 1savvymother.blogspot and click on the title there, or you may be able to cut and paste the link.

MO Tax-Free Holiday Starts TODAY!

so yeah, if you need things, this weekend (August 1-3) is the time to get them.

The sales tax exemption is limited to:

Clothing – any article having a taxable value of $100 or less
School supplies – not to exceed $50 per purchase
Computer software – taxable value of $350 or less
Personal computers – not to exceed $3,500
Computer peripheral devices – not to exceed $3,500

Sales Tax Holiday - Local Cities Opting Out (state tax will still be eliminated, but the selfish City will still collect their sales tax - BASTARDS!) -- See, they think that the public is too stupid to realize that they are still charging local tax until check-out time. So, I don't shop there on the tax holiday,

So go to The Mills Mall (in Hazelwood), or Jamestown Mall (in Florissant, or unincorporated St.Louis County) or Chesterfield Mall (in Chesterfield). They are completely state and city tax-free.

Below is the list of cities that will not participate in the 2008 sales tax holiday. City sales tax in these locations will still be collected on the sale of qualifying holiday items.

For a complete list of Missouri Cities opting out click here: http://dor.mo.gov/tax/business/sales/taxholiday/cities.htm

Alton
Ballwin
Bellerive Acres
Berkeley
Beverly Hills
Black Jack
Branson
Brentwood
Bridgeton
Byrnes Mill
Charlack
Clayton
Columbia
Cool Valley
Cottleville
Des Peres (West County mall is OUT)
Edmundson
Ellisville
Elsberry
Farmington
Frontenac (Frontenac Plaza is OUT)
Fenton
Ferguson
Festus
Greendale
Jefferson City
Joplin
Kingdom City
Kirkwood
Ladue
Manchester
Maplewood
Northwoods
Oak Grove
Oakland
Osage Beach
Overland
Ozark
Pevely
Poplar Bluff
Purdy
Richmond
Richmond Heights (The Galleria is OUT)
Rock Hill
Rolla
Shrewsbury
St Ann (Northwest Plaza is OUT)
St Peters (Mid-Rivers Mall is OUT)
Town & Country
Twin Oaks
University City
Walnut Grove
Warson Wood
Webster Grove
West Plains

Any questions? :)

$5 off Coupon at Walgreens ...

yes, again. :)

Click here: http://www.walgreens.com/hotbuys/default.jsp?ec=hn571_getcoupon

Cheap, Inexpensive Living (a/k/a You Don't Need That!)

We are now living in a time of rapidly increasing costs. Gas prices are skyrocketing, and taking everything else with them. Your SUV looks SO very cool in the driveway – but not as cool when you have to fill that beast up with $4.00 per gallon regular unleaded.

So, how CAN you live cheaply and inexpensively? Well, you have to employ the principle of “I don’t need that” into your daily vocabulary (But, say it to yourself, not out loud, lest you unnerve those nearby …).

Sounds easy, right? Well, it’s not. Our basic culture is one of consumption. We absolutely NEED tissue with aloe vera, and paper towels that allow us to select a special size, and fabric softener, and diapers that grip and fit and never EVER leak, and the latest and greatest electronic gadgets, the newest and most expensive clothing and cologne, not to mention the best washing machine ever (because the washing machine judges are going to come by and rate us on how cool we are) and, well, we don’t want our friends to think that we’re poor, or broke, or otherwise not financially sound.

Well, that’s how I thought. Until I left my husband. Oh, and then, of course, he didn’t immediately pay child support for our three kids, or the utility bills that were still in my name. Let’s not even MENTION the fact that I had to go and buy a car in my own name. I’m sure that you aren’t interested in that – BUT needless to say, that was me. I gave the impression to the world that I was financially sound (didn’t want people to feel sorry for me, right?) but that was the FARTHEST thing from the truth. I was financially, on the verge of bankruptcy (but I couldn’t file, well, because that costs money too – funny how life works …). Oh, and I made too much money to get state assistance for childcare, but DEFINITELY not enough to support three kids and my established way of living.

So, I changed. And here are a few ways how:

First, I eliminated everything that was disposable and could be replaced by something that was reuseable. Papertowels were replaced with commercial kitchen towels (the plain ordinary white ones) and I used cloth diapers (ew, and yes).

Second, I eliminated everything that I used purely for “smell” purposes. Electric plug in the wall scents, once used up, were not repurchased. I no longer use fabric softener or dryer sheets – I find that my detergent smells just fine. I don’t buy fancy shower gel (that’s right, I use bar soap) or air freshener (the biggest rip-off ever).

Third, I started washing clothes once a week. This eliminated the need to have multiples of bed linens (you only need two sets per bed), towels (again, two sets per family member), underwear (suggested ten per family member) and I think you get the picture. I stopped buying more of everything and started washing what I had. Novel concept, I know. Oh, and I stopped using hot water to wash my clothes and just used cold. In today’s market, the detergent cleans the clothes, not the temperature. If anything, hot water “sets” the stain. For extremely soiled clothing, I pre-soak in cold water overnight.

Fourth, ammonia is my friend. I can clean with it, and it doesn’t discolor (like bleach might) and its supercheap. Yay!

Fifth, I only grocery shop twice per month. This has allowed me to use what I have. I tended to buy things, and then either re-buy, or not use what I had, which was costly as food eventually expires. And, I try to only buy things that are on sale, reduced or on clearance. I freeze bread, all meat, milk (thaw in frig, shake and use), and of course, leftovers.

Sixth, there is no sweeter phrase in the English language than “hand me down”. I get hand-me downs from friends who have older kids. I use what I want and give to the goodwill what I don’t. What that means? Well, I get great clothes for FREE. And what’s better than free? (other than being rich and not needing hand me downs) NOTHING! I still buy a few items for the kids (like underwear or clothes not covered by hand me downs), however, that’s always at the end of the season when the stores are turning over their inventory for the upcoming season. Sweet.

Anyway, I say all of that to say this – it’s REALLY important to look around your house and your lifestyle to determine what you don’t need. Living with less doesn’t mean living in unhappiness and squalor, but it does mean making changes to meet your daily needs in the most economical way possible. You don’t need most of the items that you currently have. So switch out that gas guzzler, buy florescent lights, use the thermostat less and finally, stop worrying about what people think. They don’t have to live your life. If you are stressed out about money, and need to find ways to cut corners to eliminate worries, then just do it. You’ll be so much happier in the long run. I am.