Energy Star and Water Sense Sales Tax Holiday

There’s a  sales tax holiday this weekend for Energy Efficient Appliances  and Water Sense Products September 19 – 21, 2014 starting at 12:01 a.m.

Floridians will pay no sales tax on purchases of up to $1,500 of ENERGY STAR appliances and WaterSense products. However, a person is limited to a single purchase of each specific type of Energy Star or WaterSense product that has a sales price of $500 or more. There are no quantity limits for qualifying items with  a sales price less than $500.

Qualifying ENERGY STAR products|KitchAnn Style

Qualifying ENERGY STAR products:
Air purifiers
Ceiling fans
Clothes washers
Dehumidifiers
Dishwashers
Freezers
Light bulbs
Refrigerators
Room air conditioners
Swimming pool pumps
Water heaters
Qualifying WaterSense products:
Bathroom sink faucets
Faucet accessories
High-efficiency toilets and urinals
Showerheads
Weather- and sensor-based irrigation controllers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dryers are not listed because they do not meet Energy Star qualifications. Installations Charges may be tax exempt too. It get’s a little tricky but if you purchase a qualifying product that does not become part of the home and remains tangible personal property when installed, the item plus the labor are exempt if their total is less than $1,500.

Example: An Energy Star window air conditioner unit for $350 plus $100 install. The $450 total purchase qualifies.

Example: A WaterSense toilet is sold by a contractor for $465 with installation for $125. The $590 total does not qualify.

If you want to buy a Service Warranty on your new Dishwasher, it too may be exempt. If the retail sale of an item is exempt from tax, the charge for a service warranty sold with the item is also exempt when the total is less than $1,500.

WaterSense products|KitchAnn Style

Understanding Coupons and Rebates.  The price of a qualifying item is not limited to the amount paid by a customer.

Example: The Energy Star refrigerator you want is $1,795. The retailer is offering 10% off. Your purchase of $1,615.50 qualifies for the first $1,500 to be exempt. You pay sales tax on the remaining $115.50

Example: You purchase an Energy Star freezer for $1,549. The manufacturer is offering an instant $50 rebate at the time of purchase. Although you pay $1,499, the price remains the same for the retailer. They will receive $1,499 from you and $50 from the manufacturer. The first $1,500 is exempt and you pay sales tax on the remaining $49.

If the retailer – not the manufacture;, were offering the rebate in the example above, the $1,499 purchase would have been tax exempt.

Computer-shopping-kitchen-studio-of-naples

If you like to shop on the internet the good news is that if your order is accepted within the holiday period for immediate delivery, it qualifies for exemption – even if it ships after the tax holiday ends.

Shipping and handling charges are part of your purchase total and follow the same exemption rules. If you purchase multiple items on a single receipt, the shipping and handling charges must be fairly assigned to each item to determine if an item is exempt during the holiday.

How to Shop for a 60 Watt Bulb

Do you remember the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007? Provisions began taking effect the first part of this year, with many popular incandescent reflector lamps being outlawed.

  • If you used to buy 100 watt bulbs, look for a bulb with 1600 lumens
  • If you used to buy 75 watt bulbs, look for a bulb with 1100 lumens
  • If you used to buy 60 watt bulbs, look for a bulb with 800 lumens
  • If you used to buy 40 watt bulbs, look for a bulb with 450 lumens

Watts are a better predictor of how hot a light bulb will be than how bright it is. Lumens tell you how much light a bulb will provide.

To make it easier to compare light bulbs, the Federal Trade Commission has designed a new label which you have probably already seen. It was required to be on all packages starting this year.

It important to look for the ENERGY STAR on light bulb packaging, which means that they meet strict criteria set by EPA for both energy efficiency and quality. Other bulbs may be cheaper, but the tests that ENERGY STAR requires are important, and necessary for consumers to get the performance they expect.

One ENERGY STAR LED Bulb worth mentioning is the Phillips EnduraLED 12.5W. This lamp was the first LED replacement for a 60W incandescent bulb. The lamp lasts 25 times longer and uses 80% less energy than the 60W incandescent it was designed to replace.

This lamp exceeds the ENERGY STAR minimum required light output of 800 lumen, a color temperature of 2700K, Color Rendering of 80, and a minimum 3 year warranty. (806 lumens, 2700K, a CRI of 80 and a 6 year warranty)

Using a dimmer switch (bonus) can further reduce energy usage.

The long life properties eliminates the hassle of repeat relamping in hard to reach areas. It’s initial cost may be a shock at first if you have not jumped on the LED bandwagon yet and still use incandescents or CFLs

I recently found it on Amazon for $24.00