Butler County merchan ts are gearing up once again to take part in the Sales Tax Holiday during the first weekend in August.

This is the second year Alabama has taken part in the weekend that gives consumers the opportunity to purchase needed school supplies

and clothing tax free.

The weekend begins at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 3 and ends at midnight on Sunday, Aug. 5.

During that time shoppers can purchase some school supplies, computers and clothing free of state and local sales tax.

&#8220The holiday is a good thing for the City of Greenville and the State of Alabama,” said City Clerk Sue Arnold. &#8220It's good to offer a little something extra to help the parents and their educational needs for their children for school.”

This is the City of Greenville's second year participating in the weekend.

&#8220I believe that there will be a significant increase this year in the number of people taking advantage of the weekend,” she said.

Since the law surrounding this holiday is very specific about certain items and how they are purchased, Arnold encourages not only merchants but also shoppers to be aware of what they can and cannot buy duirng the weekend.

Electronics and shoes are expected to be big sellers as families nationwide begin to stock up for the 2007-2008 school year, which bodes well for Alabama's second sales tax holiday as some items in both categories are covered in the state's three-day sales tax holiday.

The state's four-percent sales tax as well as sales taxes levied by any of the 225 cities and counties that have agreed to participate are waived for those three days on:

tclothing priced at $100 or less;

tschool supplies priced at $50 or less;

tbooks valued at $30 or less;

tcomputers and computer equipment with a selling price of $750 or less.

According to the National Retail Federation's (NRF) 2007 Back-to-School Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, the average family with school-aged children in the South is expected to spend $557.26 on back-to-school items.

Remember, not everything is tax-free next weekend. For more information, visit www.alabamaretail. org and click on the sale tag.

Currently, 14 states, including Alabama, and the District of Columbia have sales tax holidays. Louisiana and Oklahoma are among the new states offering a sales tax holiday this year.