West Chester Township families heading back-to-school shopping this weekend will save 6.5% on qualifying clothes and supplies, but the list of tax-free items is far shorter than what Ohio offered last year.

The state's 2026 sales tax holiday runs from midnight Friday, Aug. 7, through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 9, according to Gov. Mike DeWine's office. Clothing priced at $75 or less per item, school supplies at $20 or less and instructional materials at $20 or less are exempt. The tax break is applied automatically at checkout, and online purchases count as long as the transaction is completed during the window. For online orders, the seller's time zone determines eligibility, not the buyer's.

That's a sharp pullback. In 2025, the holiday lasted two full weeks and covered nearly all tangible goods priced under $500. Laptops, electronics, sporting goods and small appliances all qualified. This year, none of those do.

Why the cutback

State lawmakers redirected the revenue toward property tax relief. State Rep. Adam Mathews, R-Lebanon, said the package amounts to "$2-to-$3 billion of property tax relief" and called the reforms permanent, telling WLWT that homeowners will "never see the types of property tax raises that we saw in 2021, 2022, 2023."

For Butler County residents paying a combined 6.5% sales tax rate, the per-item savings are modest but add up across a supply list. Statewide, the Ohio Department of Taxation estimates shoppers will save $24.8 million during the three days.

Local scene

At the Walmart on Cincinnati Dayton Road in West Chester, aisles were stocked with pens, pencils, notebooks and folders as of early August, WLWT reported. General merchandise coach Matt Goans said rollback prices will remain in place after the holiday ends for families who can't shop this weekend.

Rachel Kozuszek, a Lakota School District parent, visited the store with her daughter Kennedy, an incoming seventh grader, and Kennedy's friend Harper to scout deals ahead of Friday. Kozuszek said she's planning around the narrower exemptions.

"I just know that there are a handful of things that are going to cost more. So I'm just planning to try to find that, you know, when I can get the discount," she said.

What doesn't qualify

Shoppers should know that items over the price caps are fully taxable. A $76 jacket or a $21 calculator gets no break. Electronics, video games, sporting goods, alcohol, tobacco and watercraft are all excluded regardless of price.

Retailers cannot opt out. If a store charges tax on a qualifying item, shoppers can request a refund from the retailer or file a claim with the Ohio Department of Taxation.

Looking ahead

The three-day format may be temporary. Lawmakers have already passed House Bill 479, which puts $320 million into an Expanded Sales Tax Holiday Fund and mandates a 15-day holiday in August 2027 covering most tangible items under $500.