Georgia to Hold Annual ENERGY STAR, WaterSense Sales Tax Holiday

Eligible Products Help Georgians Conserve Energy and Water

To help Georgians conserve energy and water and save money, Georgians will once again have the opportunity to buy energy-saving and water-efficient products without sales taxes during the 2009 ENERGY STAR and WaterSense Sales Tax Holiday this week. The sales tax holiday begins at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, October 1, and runs through midnight Sunday, October 4. Georgians will not pay state or local sales taxes on the purchase of ENERGY STAR-qualified or WaterSense-labeled products that cost $1,500 or less per item.

“Purchasing appliances and products with ENERGY STAR and WaterSense labels helps create a culture of conservation in our state,” said Governor Perdue. “The ENERGY STAR and WaterSense Sales Tax Holiday is a perfect opportunity for Georgians to save money at the cash register and on their water and energy bills.”

This year’s sales tax holiday is a result of House Bill 120, which was sponsored by Rep. Lynn Smith and signed by Governor Perdue into law on May 4. The energy tax holiday is part of the same bill that includes the school supplies tax holiday that occurred in July.

ENERGY STAR designated products meet strict energy efficiency criteria set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Qualified ENERGY STAR appliances and products eligible for the sales tax exemption include dishwashers, clothes washers, air conditioners, ceiling fans, fluorescent light bulbs, dehumidifiers, programmable thermostats, refrigerators, doors, windows and skylights.
“With ENERGY STAR products, Georgians can save money, conserve energy and show their commitment to the stewardship of our state’s natural resources,” said Phil Foil, executive director of the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA).

Many ENERGY STAR qualified appliances use 30 percent less energy than conventional models without sacrificing features, style or comfort. Some products, such as energy efficient compact fluorescent bulbs, save as much as 80 percent. By replacing old, inefficient appliances with ENERGY STAR qualified models, Georgians can help protect the environment while saving money and energy.

For more information and to better understand the options and benefits of ENERGY STAR qualified products, visit the ENERGY STAR @ Home tool at www.energystar.gov.

The EPA created the WaterSense program to recognize major water consuming products that are 20 percent more water-efficient and perform as well as or better than conventional models. WaterSense-labeled products eligible for the sales tax exemption include bathroom sink faucets or aerators and high-efficiency toilets.

“Understanding how much water we use during routine household activities can help us all to be more water efficient,” said Carol A. Couch, director of the Environmental Protection Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. “The WaterSense label makes it easy for consumers to recognize household products that use less water and result in lower water bills.”

According to the EPA, if just one out of every four households in Georgia retrofits their bathrooms with WaterSense-labeled fixtures, it could save nearly 10 billion gallons of water per year. The average household spends as much as $500 per year on its water and sewer bill. By installing WaterSense-labeled fixtures and ENERGY STAR-qualified appliances that use water more efficiently, a household could save about $170.

Visit www.epa.gov/watersense for more information and to better understand the options and benefits of WaterSense qualified products.

Additional information regarding the ENERGY STAR and WaterSense Sales Tax Holiday is also available on the following Web sites:

Georgia Department of Revenue – www.dor.ga.gov;
Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority – www.gefa.org; and
EPD's Conserve Water Georgia – www.conservewatergeorgia.net.
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Tax-Free Holiday Helps Conserve Water, Energy

Georgians will be able to purchase certain water- and energy-saving products without paying sales tax during the tax-free holiday Oct. 2 through Oct. 5.

“This is a great opportunity to save money on products that will help conserve some of our state’s natural resources,” said Pamela Turner, a housing specialist with University of Georgia Cooperative Extension.

During the holiday, products with a WaterSense or ENERGY STAR label purchased for noncommercial or personal use will be state and local sales tax free. Specific faucets, toilets, refrigerators and dishwashers, light bulbs and air conditioners are on the list. Online purchases delivered to Georgia addresses are eligible for the sales tax exemption, too.

WaterSense

WaterSense-labeled products can add up to real savings. “If one out of every four Georgia households would use WaterSense-labeled bathroom fixtures it could save nearly 10 billion gallons of water a year,” she said.

Toilets with the WaterSense label use 20 percent less water than the current federal standard for toilets. The faucets and accessories reduce water flow by 30 percent, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. All products must meet EPA criteria before earning the WaterSense label.

ENERGY STAR

A broad range of products marked with the ENERGY STAR logo will be tax-free. Specifically, though, the exemption applies to dishwashers, clothes washers, air conditioners, ceiling fans, compact fluorescent light bulbs, dehumidifiers, programmable thermostats, refrigerators, doors and windows.

Products must be less than $1,500 and purchased for personal use.

An ENERGY STAR refrigerator uses less electricity than a 75-watt light bulb. When compared to a refrigerator made before 1993, according to the EPA, it can save up to $60 a year on energy.

To earn the ENERGY STAR rating, a refrigerator must be at least 20 percent more efficient than the national standard. Dishwashers must be 25 percent more efficient. Washing machines with the rating save enough water to wash an additional 300 loads of laundry and save up to $55 a year in energy costs.

Replacing standard light bulbs with compact fluorescent ones saves energy, too. Compact fluorescent bulbs use 68 percent less energy than a standard bulb and last 10 times longer, according to the EPA.

To learn more about ENERGY STAR go to the Web site www.energystar.gov. To learn more about WaterSense go to www.epa.gov/watersense.

Some Georgia counties offer rebates for high-efficiency toilets. For a list of counties that do go to www.epa.gov/watersense/pp/find_rebate.htm.

By April Sorrow
University of Georgia

April Sorrow is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

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Georgia to Hold Fourth Annual ENERGY STAR Sales Tax Holiday

In an effort to help Georgians conserve energy and water, save money and protect the environment, today (September 22) Governor Perdue announced Georgia’s fourth annual ENERGY STAR Sales Tax Holiday has been expanded for the first time to include WaterSense labeled products. Georgians will not pay state or local sales taxes on the purchase of energy efficient or water efficient products that cost $1,500 or less per item. The sales tax holiday begins at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, October 2, 2008 and runs through midnight Sunday, October 5, 2008.

“As Georgians look at appliances and products that have earned the now-familiar ENERGY STAR designation, I encourage them to also be more aware of water conservation and the impact of using WaterSense labeled products,” said Governor Perdue. “The ENERGY STAR and WaterSense Sales Tax Holiday provides Georgians the perfect opportunity to save money immediately at the cash register and long-term as their water and energy bills go down.”

ENERGY STAR designated products meet strict energy efficiency criteria set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Qualified ENERGY STAR appliances and products include dishwashers, clothes washers, air conditioners, ceiling fans, fluorescent light bulbs, dehumidifiers, programmable thermostats, refrigerators, doors and windows

“Through the ENERGY STAR and WaterSense Sales Tax Holiday, Georgians can save money, conserve energy and water, and show their commitment to the stewardship of our environment,” said Chris Clark, executive director of the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA).
Many ENERGY STAR qualified appliances use 30 percent less energy than conventional models without sacrificing features, style or comfort. Some products, such as energy efficient compact fluorescent bulbs, save as much as 80 percent. By replacing old, inefficient appliances with ENERGY STAR qualified models, Georgians can help protect the environment while saving money and energy.

For more information and to better understand the options and benefits of ENERGY STAR qualified products, visit the interactive ENERGY STAR @ Home tool at www.energystar.gov.

The EPA created the WaterSense program to recognize major water consuming products that are 20 percent more water-efficient and perform as well as or better than conventional models. Currently, 264 high efficiency toilets and 209 bathroom faucets and faucet accessories meet the designation and can be found at a variety of price points at retailers across the state.

“WaterSense is an opportunity for Georgians to make an important choice to help the environment,” said Carol A. Couch, director of the Environmental Protection Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. “The rewards are many, but the most immediate one is the savings you see on your water bill.”

According to the EPA, installing WaterSense labeled fixtures can have an enormous impact on the amount of water people use in their bathrooms, and the cost of water on their utility bills:

· EPA estimates that a family of four that replaces its home’s older toilets with WaterSense labeled models will, using national average water rates, save more than $90 per year in reduced water utility bills, and $2,000 over the lifetime of the toilets.

· If half of the households in Georgia replaced toilets installed before 1994 with WaterSense labeled high-efficiency toilets (HETs), the savings would be more than 18 billion gallons per year—enough to supply Savannah and surrounding communities in Chatham County for a whole year.

· If every household in Georgia installed high-efficiency faucets or faucet aerators, it would save more than five million gallons a day—that’s saving enough water to fill every tank in Atlanta’s Georgia Aquarium, the world’s largest, in about 37 hours.

For toilets, the key requirements are using no more than 1.28 gallons per flush and solid waste removal of 350 grams or more, ensuring that people won't have to flush multiple times. Faucets limit flow to 1.5 gallons per minute while still delivering 60 psi of pressure.

Visit www.epa.gov/watersense for more information and to better understand the options and benefits of WaterSense qualified products.

Several organizations have come together to ensure consumers are aware of the ENERGY STAR and WaterSense Sales Tax Holiday including the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority, Georgia Environmental Protection Division, Georgia Department of Revenue, Georgia Retail Association, Alliance to Save Energy, Clean Air Campaign, Georgia Power Company, Georgia EMC, Marietta Power, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia, Electric Cities of Georgia, the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Additional information regarding the ENERGY STAR and WaterSense Sales Tax Holiday is also available on the Department of Revenue’s website at www.dor.ga.gov.

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