Broadway Square Mall in Tyler and other retails stores around East Texas will be packed the weekend of Aug. 17-19. That's the time frame for this year's Sales Tax Holiday shopping weekend.

Us gals don't often need an excuse to shop. We'll fight the crowds in search of a good deal any old weekend. But just in case you do need an excuse to swipe your credit card and feel good about it, the tax free weekend provides one. It always draws a huge shopping crowd.

What's tax free this year?

Most footwear and clothing sold for less than $100 will be tax free during the holiday weekend. You can buy two shirts for $80 each, and both items qualify for the exemption, even though the total bill is over $100. The tax free basis is per-item. Cool!

Most backbacks, book binders, pens, pencils, glue, legal pads, tablets and school supplies are tax exempt during the sales tax holiday weekend, too. The school supply lists for many Tyler schools will be released sooner, but to save a little money you might want to procrastinate and buy them in mid-August.

And, if you're like me and you've got babies, baby clothes will be tax free too. Babies are too young to be in school, but the government must understand that babies outgrow clothing at the speed of light and more is always necessary. Thank you, Texas.

For the complete list of tax free items, CLICK HERE, and plan your attack!

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