The “Stuff the Bus” school supply collection is taking place Friday, July 29 through Sunday, July 31 in Bowling Green.

The collection will take place at Walmart where a special display will be set up so shoppers may drop off purchased products. Items will be equally distributed by NECAC to Pike County school districts.

There will also be a second weekend of the effort, August 5th through the 7th, this weekend coincides with the Missouri Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday. Purchases of specific products from Aug. 5 to 7 will be exempt from state sales taxes. County sales taxes will still be charged in Pike and Audrain, but customers won’t have to pay city taxes in Louisiana and Bowling Green. Shoppers in Vandalia and Elsberry will be charged local taxes.

Eligible items include textbooks, notebooks, paper, writing instruments, crayons, art supplies, rulers, book bags, backpacks, handheld and graphing calculators, chalk, maps and globes. The list does not include watches, radios, cd players, headphones, sporting equipment, portable or desktop telephones or office equipment.

The sales tax holiday applies only to supplies not exceeding $50 per purchase, clothing with a taxable value of $100 or less, computer software of $350 or less, personal computers and computer peripheral devices of up to $1,500 each and graphing calculators not exceeding $150.

For more information, call Penny Dixon at 573-324-2207. Other details about the sales tax holiday are available on the Missouri Department of Revenue website at www.dor.mo.gov/taxation/business/tax-types.