Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn signed legislation Wednesday that eliminates the state's 5 percent sales tax for ten days -- from Aug. 6 to Aug. 15.
"It's designed to get our consumers in Illinois back into the marketplace, back into shopping, back into having confidence in our economy," said Gov. Quinn.
The sales tax holiday applies to school supplies and clothing items that are less than $100.
Computers, art supplies and textbooks will still be taxed as normal. Any local sales tax will still be in effect.
Quinn says Illinois is the 14th state to create a tax holiday.
Critics say the tax-free week could cost the state up to $60 million in revenue at a time when Illinois is awash in debt.
But Quinn countered the tax holiday could ultimately generate more income because of increased purchases of items that don't qualify for the tax break.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
