00:00AccurEther's Leslie Hudson is live in Fern Park, Florida, with some simple preps that can save you big bucks before the storm threatens.
00:06See a little breeze in Leslie's here. That's always a good sign.
00:13I know, that breeze knocked my AirPod right out of my ear, so it's gusty out here even.
00:20I know, but it's been beautiful, you guys. The humidity is much lower, so thank you for bringing some of that cooler weather down here to Florida.
00:28We certainly could use it. We know it's short-lived, but we'll take what we can get.
00:32But today we're talking about tax relief holidays, and here in Florida, they offer some of the broadest and most affordable tax relief holidays in the country.
00:42They offer this for folks in the state of Florida year-round now.
00:46That is a new policy that just passed this past summer, but there are other states that are also taking notes.
00:52So in parts like Texas, Virginia, and Alabama, preparedness tax-free holidays are also going on throughout different parts of the year for those states.
01:01But areas like North Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, they don't specifically have hurricane relief holidays.
01:07They have had them at some point in their legislature or have either been suspended or they're waiting to go back in front of their congressional leaders to see if they're going to reenact those.
01:16But there are back-to-school holidays and other savings in other states as well in these hurricane-prone areas to try and encourage consumers that live in these states to be disaster-ready year-round.
01:27But as of many parts of summer here in Florida, hurricane preps, as I mentioned, are permanently tax-free.
01:34That can include anything from batteries, carbon monoxide alarms, some portable generators, tarps, and even more.
01:40The best way to control your destiny at your local home is to take matters into your own hands, and that is to have some personal preparedness.
01:57Now, damage and economic loss reached about $500 billion last year's hurricane season.
02:03So the push to get storm-ready is growing across many of these hurricane-prone states.
02:09State leaders say the disasters illuminate why preparedness needs to be year-round in these hurricane areas.
02:15And it's more than just stocking up on your hurricane kit.
02:18It can mean home upgrades that add resilience as well.
02:21An example would be a solar heater.
02:23You can actually get a break on those, a tax break on those, and not just when the power is out.
02:28You can buy those year-round depending on where you live.
02:31Also, big-tag items that are energy savers, like refrigerators, washer-in dryers, even air conditioners, those also can be tax-free.
02:40Here in Florida, those are actually now tax-free year-round.
02:44So you don't even have to be preparing for a disaster.
02:47If you need one of those big-tag items, you can actually get it tax-free here in the state of Florida.
02:51But there are some other states in the southeast and the mid-Atlantic that also offer those perks.
02:56So make sure you check with your local leaders to find out if you're one of those states that gets one of those tax breaks either certain times of the year or you're in a tax holiday at this time.
03:06So, again, you guys, I just want to make sure that folks know that there is all kinds of home improvements that you can do that will last you year-round.
03:14That will not only make your home more disaster-ready, but it also can be important home upgrades for your home in the event that you want to sell it or just want to upgrade it for future use.
03:23Reporting live from Fern Park, I'm Leslie Hudson.
03:25Back to you.
03:26All right, Leslie, we appreciate the update.
03:28She'll need, like, a sweatshirt and a hoodie out there soon.
03:30She looks cold.
03:31Good cool in Florida.
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