Sales Tax Holidays Have Little Effect

This is from a Wall Street Journal article about back-to-school sales:

Despite sales tax holidays in several states designed to spur sales, back-to-school spending remains lackluster, according to industry experts.

Tax holidays are supposed to encourage shopping, but in reality they prompt schedule changes more than anything else. Consumers decide which items they want to buy and which they can do without. Then, they postpone their shopping trips until the tax holiday weekend. This does not result in a boon to the national economy.