---
title: HB 386. Back to School Relief Act; enact
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb386
cite_as: HB 386, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb386
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb386.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb386/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70186
date: 2025-02-13
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md
omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb386.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 386
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-02-11
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
- Imani Barnes
- Carolyn Hugley
- Rhonda Burnough
- Edna Jackson
- Karla Drenner
- Kimberly Alexander
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB386/2025
upstream_id: 1965753
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- sales tax holiday
- back to school shopping
- school supplies
- tax exemptions
---
# HB 386. Back to School Relief Act; enact
## Text
House Bill 386
By: Representatives Barnes of the 86th, Hugley of the 141st, Burnough of the 77th, Jackson
of the 165th, Drenner of the 85th, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Code Section 48-8-3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
exemptions from sales and use taxes, so as to exempt sales of clothing and school related
supplies during the last weekend of July each year; to provide for a short title; to provide for
a sunset date; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other
purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Back to School Relief Act."
SECTION 2.
Code Section 48-8-3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to exemptions from
sales and use taxes, is amended in paragraph (75) by revising subparagraph (A) and adding
a new subparagraph to read as follows:
"(75)(A) The sale of eligible property. The exemption provided by this paragraph
applies only to sales occurring during the period commencing at 12:01 A.M. on July 30,
2016, the last Thursday in the month of July and concluding at 12:00 Midnight on July
31, 2016 the following Sunday."
"(D) This paragraph shall stand repealed and reserved on December 31, 2028."
SECTION 3.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.
## Summaries written by Georgia Commons
The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.
A Georgia House bill would create an annual sales tax holiday on clothing and school supplies over the last weekend of July, running through 2028, by amending the state's sales tax exemption law.
### Plain-language summary
Georgia law currently exempts certain 'eligible property,' such as clothing and school supplies, from sales and use tax during a specific window that was tied to a fixed 2016 date. This bill, called the Back to School Relief Act, rewrites that exemption so it recurs every year instead of applying only once.
The tax-free period would run from 12:01 a.m. on the last Thursday of July through midnight the following Sunday, covering roughly four days each year. The bill also adds a sunset clause so the exemption automatically expires on December 31, 2028, meaning lawmakers would need to renew it after that date for the tax break to continue. The bill repeals any conflicting laws.
### What it does
- Rewrites Georgia's sales tax exemption law (O.C.G.A. § 48-8-3) so the clothing and school supplies tax holiday recurs annually instead of applying only to a one-time 2016 date.
- Sets the tax-free period as starting 12:01 a.m. the last Thursday of July and ending midnight the following Sunday each year.
- Adds a sunset provision that repeals the exemption automatically on December 31, 2028.
- Gives the Act a short title, the 'Back to School Relief Act.'
### Who it affects
Georgia shoppers buying clothing and school supplies, retailers who must apply the tax exemption at checkout during the holiday period, and the state revenue system, which would forgo sales tax collections during that annual window through 2028.
### Why it matters
Families buying back-to-school clothing and supplies would save on sales tax every year during a set late-July window instead of relying on a one-time exemption, while the state would collect less sales tax revenue during that period until the exemption expires in 2028.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 names the bill the 'Back to School Relief Act.'
- Section 2 amends paragraph (75) of O.C.G.A. § 48-8-3 to change the exemption window from a fixed 2016 date to an annual period from the last Thursday of July through the following Sunday.
- Section 2 adds new subparagraph (D), which repeals the exemption on December 31, 2028 unless further action is taken.
- Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-02-11)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2025-02-13)
- Sponsors: Imani Barnes, Carolyn Hugley, Rhonda Burnough, Edna Jackson, Karla Drenner, Kimberly Alexander
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70186
> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb386.md?full=1