- 2024 Disaster Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday runs until June 14th.
- Certain preparedness items are sales tax-free across the state during this period.
- Watch the video to hear how neighbors are taking advantage of the tax break.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Hurricane season is officially here and with that comes preparation.
Cynthia Tucker, Woodville Neighbor - “Not afraid, just going to be a little bit more prepared.”
I’m Kenya Cardonne, your Southeast Tallahassee neighborhood reporter.
The 2024 Disaster Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday is also here in Florida, helping neighbors get ready for what could be an active season.
Devin Crockett, Employee at ACE Hardware Woodville - “Tallahassee has been that zone that always kinda gets missed but with this storm I think people are taking the storm season a lot more serious and they’re buying more.”
ACE Hardware Woodville employee Devin Crockett tells me business is ramping up as we head into hurricane season.
Tucker - “We woke up to a war zone.”
Neighbors say after recent tornadoes left Tallahassee homes and hearts in destruction, they’re definitely learning from their mistakes.
Katrina Ward, Woodville Neighbor - “Well I think it just makes me more aware that I need to be fully prepared because at any moment we could have bad weather.”
Tucker - “And now that I came down to ACE to find out that they have this tax relief on items I’m definitely going to pick up some things while I’m here.”
June 1st marked the start of the hurricane season and the start of a 14-day Disaster Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday in Florida, where neighbors across the state can buy certain preparedness items tax-free.
List of Tax Exempt Items:
$10 or less
• Wet dog or cat food if sold individually or the equivalent if sold in a box or case
$15 or less
• Manual can openers
• Collapsible or travel-sized food or water bowls for pets
• Cat litter pans
• Pet waste disposal bags
• Hamster or rabbit substrate
$20 or less
• Reusable ice
• Leashes, collars, and muzzles for pets
• Pet pads
$25 or less
• Cat litter weighing 25 or fewer pounds
$40 or less
• Portable self-powered light sources
• Pet beds
$50 or less
• Portable self-powered radios, two-way radios, or weather-band radios
• Gas or diesel fuel tanks
• Batteries, including rechargeable batteries, listed sizes only: AA-cell, AAA-cell, C-cell, D-cell, 6-volt, 9-volt
$60 or less
• Nonelectric food storage coolers
• Portable power banks
$70 or less
• Smoke detectors or smoke alarms
• Fire extinguishers
• Carbon monoxide detectors
$100 or less
• Tarpaulins or other flexible waterproof sheeting
• Ground anchor systems
• Portable pet kennels or pet carriers
• Dry dog or cat food weighing 50 or fewer pounds
• Over-the-counter pet medications
$3,000 or less
• Portable generators used to provide light or communications or to preserve food in a power outage
I spoke with neighbors in Woodville who are taking advantage of the tax break.
Ward - “It really saves a lot especially if you need a lot but I have done that in the past and that’s why I’m set now.”
Tucker - “I think this is just a good incentive for the government to give to people because everyone don’t have the same kind of income and like I said, if you’re a tax payer, I think it’s a thing that we should just get extra anyway.”
In Southeast Tallahassee, Kenya Cardonne, ABC 27
