Iowa’s annual Sales Tax Holiday will be held over the next few days, as most purchases of clothing and footwear will be sales tax-free. Victoria Daniels, spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Revenue, says there is a specific purpose to the two-day tax holiday, which runs tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday. “A lot of people like to take advantage of it and get a head start on their back-to-school shopping,” Daniels says. This is the 14th year for the Sales Tax Holiday in Iowa. Daniels says the two days are favored by both shoppers and merchants.

“It’s pretty popular,” Daniels says. “There are limits to what you can buy so it’s not necessarily a free-for-all. One good thing is that you don’t have to be a student to take advantage of it. Anybody who purchases the qualifying items during the sales period is able to purchase them exempt from the sales tax.” Daniels says the items that are eligible for the sales tax-free weekend need to fall under the category of clothing and footwear, but they must also meet certain definitions.

“It doesn’t include things you would think of as accessories, like a watch, jewelry or umbrellas,” she says. “Anything you would not normally wear every day, something designed for athletic activity or protective use, those things are not going to qualify either.” Some examples include tennis shoes — which could be worn for gym class or for everyday — those would qualify for the exemption but football cleats would not qualify.

Learn more about the Iowa Sales Tax Holiday at: www.iowa.gov/tax/educate/holiday1.html

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

(Lenox) — An ATV accident in Adams County has claimed the life of a Lenox man, and injured a child. The Iowa State Patrol reports a volunteer firefighter found 41-year old Carey Ishikawa and an unidentified 9-year old boy were found underneath an overturned 1987 Honda ATV. The machine was located in a ditch near an intersection northwest of Lenox, at around 5:30-p.m., Wednesday.

WAVERLY, Iowa (AP) — A jury has awarded more than $80,000 to a former paralegal after finding that Floyd County didn’t respond appropriately to her repeated complaints about sexual harassment in the county attorney’s office. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that jurors returned their verdict yesterday afternoon, finding that Theresa Farmer was sexually harassed by fired County Attorney Jesse Marzen.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Des Moines police lieutenant who pleaded guilty to a mortgage scheme has been sentenced to six month of home confinement and three years of probation. The Des Moines Register reports U.S. District Judge James Gritzner signed a sentencing order yesterday for Lieutenant Wade Wojewoda of Grimes requiring home confinement except for employment. Wojewoda’s lawyer says his police officer certification will likely be revoked.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — A Waterloo man who failed to register as a sex offender has been sentenced to more than three years in federal prison. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports 41-year-old Dana Curry received the sentence Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids. Curry pleaded guilty to the charge in March. Prosecutors say he did not properly update his sex offender registration in Iowa from mid-2010 through end of 2012.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Officials are still trying to figure out how to remove excessive algae from a popular pond in Des Moines. Des Moines television station KCCI reports city officials added aerators to the pond at Greenwood Park in an effort to help circulate the water.