FLORIDA — From the moment they opened their doors Saturday morning, Carolann Nixon, manager of the Ace Hardware store on Bloomingdale Avenue in Brandon, said there's been a steady stream of single-minded customers.

They've come to stock up on hurricane readiness supplies on the first day of Florida's sales tax holiday, which runs from May 28 to June 10.

With the official start of hurricane season, June 1, just two days away, hurricane preppers are taking advantage of the state's offer to residents to stock up on hurricane supplies without paying taxes.

Clenching lists of eligible tax-free items to purchase, customers perused the shelves, grabbing batteries, flashlights, lanterns and sand bags.

"We're definitely working our butts off today," said Nixon, chuckling, as the cash registers steadily ring up sales.

The amount of savings customers will see during the tax-free holiday depends on the amount of supplies they're purchasing and the cost of those supplies, she said.

But she said she's seeing customers saving from $5 to $100. And with the current inflation combined with supply shortages, even a few dollars can help a family, she said.

Among the biggest sellers by far, said Nixon, are batteries, flashlights and cases of water to help see families through extended power outages and water shortages.

The Florida Department of Revenue said the two-week tax-free holiday period ending Friday, June 10, includes:

Plus, through the efforts of Palm Harbor Girl Scout Troop No. 60601, Speaker of the House Chris Sprowls, R-Palm Harbor, convinced the Legislature to add pet supplies to the eligible list of tax-free items.

Last spring, the seven Scouts in the troop began brainstorming ideas for their Girl Scout Silver Award, the highest merit award for middle school-aged girls. Since they collectively have 15 pets, the girls decided to launch an online petition drive to get pet items included on the hurricane tax-free list.

Troop leader Kristen Crawford even took the girls to Tallahassee to address the House about their proposal. They found a champion in Sprawls who submitted a bill to the House that was approved during the 2022 legislative session.

Pet items exempt from taxes during the tax-free holiday this year include:

There is no limit on the number of qualifying items that can be purchased tax-free.

Not included during the tax-free holiday are hotel fees, airline tickets, tickets to theme parks or entertainment complexes, commercial purchases of eligible pet evacuation supplies, rental or repairs of any of the qualifying tax-free items, items purchased with gift cards and items purchased with rain checks after the tax-free holiday.

For a complete list of items, click here.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.